Custom-made small car donation gives Minneapolis kids with disabilities independence
MINNEAPOLIS — Minneapolis Public Schools and Special Olympics Minnesota teamed up to help students with disabilities find some independence.
New rides are bringing some new found freedom to places like Lucy Craft Laney Elementary school in Minneapolis.
Jenna Weber's daughter Emelia is one of the lucky kids taking a spin in a new Jeep custom made for her and her friends.
"We built a lot of flexibility in them so they could seat very small kids to very large kids," explained volunteer Richard Parnell. "And for some kids who can use the accelerator, we put a switch in and rewired them so they can use the switch to have mobility and independently be able to move."
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Parnell built the jeeps, taking hundreds of hours to transform and tinker. He made a vehicle that fits almost any child's needs.
"We have to modify it all, so for someone to be able to do it on something fun, not just something she needs to function, it's amazing," said Weber.
"She drove across this gym and her eyes got big and she smiled and I think we were probably all cheering," said Emelia's physical therapist Chrissy Storlie. "And then she knew, she knew as soon as she hits that switch she gets to drive the car. And that was the first time I had ever seen Emme independently move her body."
It's a big deal not just for Emelia, but for her mother too
"With the car, when she's at school and gets to play and do something like a normal kid, I mean it means the world really," said Weber.
That's the goal with this project. And it's something the man who helped build it takes to heart.
"This was the first time I'd seen the children using them and yeah I got very emotional seeing the families. The appreciation they have to see their kids for the first time being able to experience independent mobility," said Parnell. "It makes it all worth while."
Parnell said it took him 200 hours to get the first Jeep built.
He's gotten a little faster since then. In all there will be 10 of those vehicles at different schools throughout Minneapolis.