Dr. Warren Mack Gives a Raspberry Pi to Father of Paralyzed Son
Two months ago, cybersecurity student Michael Lipsey’s son was shot and seriously injured in an accident, sending him to the hospital where he has remained to recover from his injury. When this tragic event occurred, Hallmark’s faculty and staff came together and sent Michael and his son countless messages of encouragement to help them in their time of need. Dr. Warren Mack, Instructor at Hallmark University’s School of Information Technology, saw a fantastic opportunity to help Michael and his son in a very special way. Dr. Mack purchased the father and son a Raspberry Pi, a customizable microcomputer the size of a credit card that has an endless amount of uses and applications, to allow them to learn more about computing as Michael’s son continues to heal in the hospital.
“The school’s been really supportive of him since the accident happened a couple of months ago,” said Michael Lipsey. “I wasn’t expecting anything other than the normal stuff that people say when you have a kid that’s injured. But Dr. Mack took it a step further, I told him that I’d been studying acronyms with my son to get him to start thinking about Cyber Patriot and STEM classes in high school. The very next class, Dr. Mack shows up and says he got a microcomputer for my son and me.”
Dr. Mack gave them the Raspberry Pi to provide them with fun ways for both to learn about computers while in the hospital. Michael’s son has been researching projects for the Raspberry Pi and has found many options that he and his dad are excited to explore, such as a gaming emulator, motorized skateboard, and a tool for learning how to code. Their first project, to create a remote-controlled car, will teach them more about computers and programming, something with which Dr. Mack is happy to help.
“When I met Michael two terms ago, he was a little stand-offish with computers since he wasn’t too familiar with their hardware,” said Dr. Mack. “I felt this is one of the ways that we could get him and his son more experience and to get his son excited. The two of them have a chance to bond more, and they’re getting to work on more things together now that they didn’t have before.”
Michael’s son is recovering from his injury and is exploring the exciting projects that Dr. Mack’s Raspberry Pi brings with it. Michael shares that he is happy that Hallmark is more than just a school, but is more of a community of people that genuinely cares for one another and does what is necessary to help each other in their times of need.