News

Kelly’s Experience as a Digital Champion at Boost

4th June 2025

This Volunteers’ Week, we’re thanking volunteers throughout the community – and taking a look at some remarkable volunteer experiences. In this article, we thank Digital Champion Kelly Hui. An incredible example of how volunteers can pass on the skills they have acquired throughout their career!

I was born in Hong Kong. I came to the UK as a student in 1977. After graduating with a computer science degree, I had the pleasure to work on one of the early computers used in business. Since then, I have worked with computers and technology for more than 40 years. My last role before my retirement in 2020 was to help to connect people, living in remote places in Africa and Asia, to the internet using mobile and satellite technologies.

I’ve been married to my wife Linda for 35 years. Together we raised two wonderful daughters. Both are doing extremely well in their chosen career. One piece of advice I gave them was to strive to live the life of their dreams.

I enjoy walking and swimming. I love to travel and experience street-food from all over the world. I am intrigued by traditional cultures and how they shape social and technological developments. Recently, I started researching examples of people achieving their life dreams influenced by their culture. I am particularly interested in examples between Eastern and Western cultures.

What motivated you to become a volunteer?

I have always enjoyed passing on my learning to others. It has an immediate rewarding effect on me. From teaching computer programming in Hong Kong Polytechnic, to mentoring many product managers throughout my career, I always felt that I get more out of the experience than the people I helped.

I want to continue that positive experience in my retirement. After participating in the Digital Inclusion programme as a Digital Champion, I enjoyed helping people to improve their digital skills, which are essential in our increasingly connected world. It is really a win-win situation for me.

How did you find out about the volunteering role?

I have been volunteering at the Chinese Community Centre in Camden for a couple of years. The real experience of helping people triggered me to expand my volunteering. I came across the Barnet Digital Champion recruitment via Google. Following a positive interview call with the coordinator and a trial session at the local library, I was convinced that I could help.

Tell us about your volunteering role

As a Digital Champion, I help residents with all things digital in the following settings:

1. Walk-in sessions: Residents come to these sessions with issues ranging from filling a form, registering for a service, creating a profile on a job site, using their laptop/mobile phone or creating MS Office documents (Word / Excel / Powerpoint). I listen, diagnose the problems and provide solutions to resolve the residents’ issues.
2. Make-It-Click workshops: Residents attend these workshops to follow a scheduled programme to improve their digital skills in areas such as how to use email, introduction to social media, how to stay safe online, introduction to MS Office, how to organise a Team / Zoom call and how to use online NHS Health service / app.
3. I present these topics and facilitate questions and answers from the participants. My goal is to increase residents’ confidence in using these services on their own. I also engage in group tutorials for more advanced participants who want to be more fluent in using MS Office applications.
4. Device rejuvenation: I help reset old laptops collected from companies. At Secondchance, a charity setup to re-cycle retired devices from organisations, I am pleased to have the opportunity to help bring these perfectly usable devices back to life. Many of them go to residents who do not have access to a computer.

In addition to having a rewarding feeling after helping residents with their digital skills, I also enjoy being challenged and solving problems. I believe this is one of the motivations for being a Digital Champion.

What advice would you give to someone considering becoming a volunteer?

What I would say to would be volunteers, is that volunteering is more about your personal discovery and experience from doing something that makes you happy. The realisation of embracing our potential to share with others, will result in gaining happiness more than simply giving up some of your time and effort to help others.

Can you sum up your experience in three words?

Meaningful, Rewarding, Happiness

If you would like to find a new volunteering experience, or would like to see how volunteering can work for you, email us on enquiry@volunteeringbarnet.org.uk or you can search our database here to find your perfect role!