St. Albans resident Sherie Ellison is helping seniors bridge the digital divide through her free workshop, Tech Savvy Seniors. Since June, Ellison has been teaching older adults how to navigate smartphones while educating them about scams that often target their age group.
“We live in a time where technology is moving really fast, and while it’s designed to make life easier, I know it’s often frustrating and overwhelming for some of us,” Ellison explained.
Running the program solo, Ellison partners with local churches and community groups to organize her workshops, which she hosts on weekends. Each session includes an hour-long PowerPoint presentation covering the basics of social media, using FaceTime, downloading essential apps and scanning QR codes.
A key focus of her workshops is scam prevention. “The scams and the frauds are coming through the cell phones. They’re attacking them, and they’re really preying on [seniors], she said.” Ellison said many scammers imitate Zelle or Amazon in phishing scams to collect personal information from seniors.
Ellison also teaches seniors how to protect themselves from predatory mortgage theft scams. “There’s a gentleman in Brooklyn, 90 years old, somebody stole his house. What they do is they file these fraudulent claims submitted to the state, steal the property, and now all of a sudden they’re being foreclosed,” she said.
To combat this, Ellison teaches participants how to register with the Automated City Register Information System (ACRIS), which alerts them to any filings against their property. “If we’re not diligent enough for ourselves, much less for our elderly consumers, then we have a bunch of people who are losing their homes, and it’s a big thing,” Ellison said.
Ellison’s inspiration for the workshops comes from a personal place. She created Tech Savvy Seniors in memory of her grandmother, who passed away during the pandemic. “I’ve always had a special place in my heart for the elderly community. I had a very close relationship with my grandmother. I would have done anything to protect her,” she said.
Looking ahead, Ellison hopes to expand her program by partnering with more organizations to reach even more seniors.
For more information, contact Sherie Ellison at sheriebellison@gmail.com.
