CDC NEWS

300 Computer Printers to Be Given Away Saturday on First-Come, First- Serve Basis The Giveaway is Being Conducted By a Former Political Refugee.

Posted on: Friday, 8 September 2006, 18:00 CDT

By SANDY STRICKLAND

When he moved to Jacksonville, Corantin Talla was a Cameroon political refugee whose life had been threatened in his native country. Now he's a database consultant with a master's degree who oversees a printer giveaway program.

From 2 to 6 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 26, Talla will preside over his fourth giveaway since December with 300 printers being distributed on a first-come, first-serve basis to eligible organizations.

The printers are packed in cardboard boxes at Jax Storage Mall, 2825 St. Johns Bluff Road, on the Southside.

Social service agencies, churches, public and private schools and charitable and faith-based organizations are among those eligible.

Dell Computer donated the refurbished printers, which have printing, copying and scanning capabilities.

Ink cartridges and cabling are included.

Dell gave the printers to Gifts In Kind International, a charitable clearing house, for distribution to nonprofit groups in numerous cities.

Talla administers the program in this area for Gifts in Kind, through a charitable corporation that he founded in 2003 called Conscience du Cameroun Inc.

Talla, who resettled in Jacksonville in 1995 and has a master's in public administration from the University of North Florida, said he wanted to help the needy in his adopted community.

He would like to get computers from Dell to distribute to programs serving children, minorities and the handicapped.

Talla, a senior database consultant for Oracle, a software program, said he also wants to create programs to help immigrants from places such as Africa, as well as collect Christmas toys for children and clothing for the homeless.

He hopes to obtain funding to set up a computer training center for new immigrants, many of whom have never seen a computer.

His desire to help others goes back to his student days when he battled what he called widespread corruption.

While at the University of Yaounde in 1991, he founded the Cameroon Student Parliament to fight for students' rights, better academic conditions and democratic change in the Central African country. He was accused of trying to overthrow the government, arrested and had his life threatened, Talla said.

For the printer giveaway program to continue, Talla, who is paying storage fees himself, said he needs a permanent storage warehouse.

For information call 655-4540 or download the Dell printer application at www.conscienceducameroun.org and fax to 721-2637 or e- mail to tallaco@hotmail.com.

If unable to reach him, Talla said, recipients can bring the completed application form and proof of nonprofit status with them Saturday.sandy.strickland@jacksonville .com,               (904) 359-4128       

(c) 2006 Florida Times Union. Provided by ProQuest Information and Learning. All rights Reserved.

 

Source: Florida Times Union