Inspiration
As I was looking through the prize categories for an idea for my project, one stood out to me: being a good neighbor. This got me thinking, during these crazy times of social distancing, work from home, and isolation, why not get closer with our neighbors? Everyone has unique skills and services to offer the community and what better way to utilize them than contributing to your neighborhood and offering to help those in need, whether it be phyiscally or mentally. That's why I decided to make Community Service, a platform for neighbors to connect and find neighbors who are offering to help them with certain services, such as fixing home appliances, picking up groceries for the elderly, or just chatting virtually with those who feel lonely. As a neighborhood, people can help boost moral and decrease stress by continuing their daily routines.
What it does
Community Service is a web app for neighbors to connect and find neighbors who are offering helpful services. While the website functionality is not fully complete (this is a hackathon), the idea is that one would go on the website and search for their neighborhood. If found, they can request to join the group (acceptance moderated by a member of the group). Otherwise, they can add their neighborhood. Then, users can either post services they are offering or browse through services that other people in their neighborhood are offering. If a user would like to ask a neighbor to perform a service, they can contact them with the provided contact information. Since the group membership is moderated by someone in the group, you can ensure that everyone in the group belongs to that neighborhood and would be relatively trustworthy. Also, as a community, you know what the virus prevention requirements are and you are aware of whether the policies are being followed. Thus, this system is much more reliable than having to call a plumber and invite them into your home or phyiscally go to a psychologist when you are depressed. Overall, Community Service promotes interaction (virtually) and stability in a time of isolation and uncertainty.
How I built it
The website was built using HTML, CSS, and the React.js framework. I used Node.js and Express for the backend, and Postgres for a database. Finally, I deployed the website using Azure's services.
Challenges I ran into
This was my first time working with Azure and I had some difficulty figuring out how the deployment worked and how to connect to the database. However, I attended a workshop at ShellHacks that helped clear up some concerns. Also, I ran out of time to finish the entire project. My intention was to include a login system so users can join their neighborhood and keep track of their service posts. I'd also like to include a profile where people can give more information about themselves and include a profile picture, which will make the site more credible.
Accomplishments that I'm proud of
I am proud of myself for trying something new and learning about Azure. I am also proud of myself for being able to design some core features of the platform, even in a time crunch. This was a great learning experience for me and I am excited to continue further.
What I learned
I learned how to deploy a web app with Azure and connect it to a Postgres database.
What's next for Community Service
To continue this project further, I would like to add a login system as well as user profiles. It might also be useful for people to be able to communicate within the app through a chat rather than needing to use everyone's contact information and schedule things outside of the platform.
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