It was November 28, 2017 the first day of Google Code-In, I recall looking through the organizations and the name “LibreHealth” caught my eye…
It was on the first day that I logged the chat for LibreHealth and to my avail there were a few mentors waiting, one in particular, Robby O’Connor. My first task, took a while and taught me a great deal. With the help of TeryHill, another GCI mentor, I completed my very first task. From the get go, I looked over the task about becoming a part of community, but with the request of Robby, I completed it.
Major Accomplishments
In these past 2 months, I have done some many new things, that I never imagined I could do with the skill set I had in my possession. But to my avail, the things I managed to produce and give to LibreHealth to this day suprise me.
LibreHealth Start Guide:
Wikipedia Page:
My wikipedia page recently was deleted, a shock to me, but a learning experience I will never forget, it taught me the tedious action of referencing everything that needs to be referenced.
And many more…
My fondest memories and takeways:
Well, before I get into what I want to keep, I want to thank all my mentors, my new family I have made while working with LibreHealth. The people that have guided me through every climb and every hill have been, Art Eaton, Judy Gichoya, Robby O’Connor, Tony McCormick, and Terry Hill. You all have been there when I needed you, and without you all students like me wouldn’t have the opportunity to do something like this. I want to thank you all because I know you all are volunteering to do this, but not everyone is willing to spend 2 months of their time to teach people like me.
Not only have I met mentors I will keep in touch with, but also many new friends as well such as Mateusz, MigDinny, Vishwas, Adrien. I have not only taught them, but they have taught me as well. From the hours I spent on the community chat helping out new comers to the thousands of lines of code that I rewrote, like Chinese calligraphy every stroke matters.
What I will take away:
Well, first of all, I am not leaving, even though these two months are coming to an end, a new path awaits me life after GCI, and new ideas and projects I have in mind. To say I am leaving is completely wrong, but rather that I am sucked in.
LibreHealth is not just some organization or community, is a part of me, I am a member of a family dedicated to innovating health care.
The countless people I have helped
The many friends I have made
The ties I have made with my mentors
The memories that have come
The Bootstrap, php, Docker, Java, CSS… that I have learned in two months is something that before meeting you all would never have happened. I don’t know what is it like to have GCI ending, and not having the constant pings on my laptop or phone, or the emails of a git hub notifcation, but I assure you that despite GCI ending, those constant pings and dings will still be there, and “jdew192837” will be present.
Thank you all,
For teaching me, mentoring me, bonding with me, dealing with me, it is something that I keep deeply stored, and something that I will carry with me as I progress through my remaining years of high school.