I frequently get asked, “How do you know all this computer stuff?” and my short answer is: “I was always ‘poor’. If something broke or quit working, I had to figure out how to fix it or do without, since purchasing anything new was never an option for me.”
The 2nd most common question, “How did you get into this business?” is a much longer answer. I was a teacher for 15 years, the last 9 here in Tillamook. I left due to the political climate. I worked for a year with a friend and then worked with Kristy (who owned Certified On-Site Tech) for a year. It was with her I discovered my love for computers.
I was always the “Techy Teacher”, willing to embrace the new technology introduced into the classroom and due to lack of available Technicians in the District, I found I was constantly trouble shooting the technical woes that come with computers in the classroom for myself and my fellow teachers in the building. When I went to work with Kristy, she taught me more about the inner workings of electronics and how to research issues. During my 2nd year with Kristi, I had decided I loved helping people with their computers. Kristy was thinking of selling the business and I started making plans of how I would run it if it were mine. Alas, I couldn’t get the funding to purchase Kristi’s business.
Then one night when I returned home, my street was lined with cars. (It happened 2-3 times a week on a regular basis, I just never paid much attention before.) Across the street from my house is J’Andy Oysters. It got me thinking, could I have a business in my house? A quick search of the city’s zones revealed I was dual zoned: both business and residential. My house was ideal for a small business, since it had 2 “Front Doors”. One on the 8th Street side and one on the Ivy Avenue side. My husband, Garrick, who was a carpenter for 10 years before becoming a teacher for the Neah-Kah-Nie School District, added a work bench, intake table and small counter to our sun porch. In May of 2015, Qlty Computer Repair was born.
In July of 2016, I called Evan and asked if he would be interested in “temporary” work. I was going to need someone to help with the shop if I was going to do the fair. He agreed. By December of 2016, I had decided that since Evan was still working 8 hrs a day, every day since the fair, he was no longer temporary and offered him a full time job (with a raise, of course!). Evan accepted.
In January of 2017, Qlty Computer Repair was re-branded “Michelle’s Qlty Computer Repair, LLC” -not much of a change since everyone was calling it that anyway. Evan and I made a fantastic team. He knew a lot about programming, Linux and Mac technology. His artistic talents led him to be knowledgeable about graphics/video programs and photography/editing programs. My talents were in Microsoft and Windows technology, Researching, Resourcing and customer relations. As time went on, we found Evan spent most of the time in the office, while I went on service calls.
When COVID came to the US and the government made restrictions for businesses. Evan and I came out of the first set of restrictions, barely surviving. When the second set of restrictions were placed in 2020, I had to tell Evan I was going to close shop. I needed to be able to pay bills and it was becoming increasingly clear I would not be able to. In May of 2020, Michelle’s Qlty Computer Repair, LLC was officially closed.
~ Michelle Gordon
