(Lander, WY) – A group of local kiddos with mobility issues got to test out their new Go Baby Go! adaptive mobility carts this past weekend in the Home Source Realty parking lot, where the folks responsible for the carts put on a thank-you celebration and set up an obstacle course to try out the new wheels.
Go Baby Go is a nationwide effort that provides information on how to modify battery-operated ride-on cars “to give children with mobility impairments an opportunity to access play, exploration, and social encounters.” When Lander mom Amber Peckham-Jones realized there were accessibility issues in the Lander community for physically-challenged children like her daughter, Nasyi, she made it her mission to do something, and learned more about Go Baby Go!
Peckham-Jones then connected with Ami Vincent at the LOR Foundation to fund the project, as well as local Pathfinder High School teacher Sam Hartpence to engineer/modify the carts, along with members of his Robotics Club and other volunteers. (You can hear more about how the project got started from Peckham-Jones, Hartpence, and LVHS student/robotics club member Ethan Titus, in their Coffee Time interview from back in June!)
After the carts made their teaser debut at the Lander 4th of July Parade, it was time for the carts to be presented to the kids, which included Teegan Foster, Ollie Horton, Melodi Trowbridge, Sutton West, and Nasyi Jones, with Fiona Casey still on the docket to receive hers.
At Saturday’s celebration, local special needs educators Bo and Chelsey Red Bow helped set up a racetrack obstacle course so the kids could test out their carts, and so Hartpence and the Robotics Club members could work out any issues in real time.
Left to Right: Elijah Ruehl, Sully Primrose, Hunter McIntyre, Ethan Titus, Sebastian Bannon, Chase Hartpence (all members of the robotics club) Jackson Anderson, Alden Hartpence (volunteers).
Not pictured, additional volunteers from the robotics club who could not make the event:Braily Bishop (grade 7) (robotics club), Ethan and Cooper Bryce (grade 8) (robotics club), Carson Peters (grade 8 (robotics club), Caleb Wolfe (grade 5) (robotics club), Owen Bertrem (grade 9) (robotics club), Caitlyn Riley (grade 8) (robotics club), Brailee Blumenshine (Grade 11) (PHS student), Jericho Ansi Shoyo (grade 11) (PHS student), Daniel Cox (grade 12) (PHS student)
“It’s the most amazing feeling to see our community and the kids getting together and just what happens when you partner with your community, what an outcome can actually be,” Peckham-Jones shared with County 10 before shouting out Hartpence for being “the mastermind behind the wiring and the teacher that led the robotics club,” as well as the Redbows for setting up the obstacle course.
“I can’t even say it in words. My heart is just overjoyed.”
Peckham-Jones is also on the board for the Lander Inclusion Movement, which aims to be a resource for those who are differently abled.
“I reach out to families that I know that have children with different needs or even just people in our community, and try to help them find resources and advocate for them.”
Also in attendance at the celebration was Vincent from the LOR Foundation, which is an organization that helps fund and provide resources for various community needs, or, as we like to call them here at County 10, a “good news factory.”
Vincent developed a relationship with Peckham-Jones when she initially reached out to LOR for help/funding for Caroline’s Carts, which are adaptive shopping carts currently available for use at Mr. D’s and Safeway.
“We’ve had this relationship for a couple of years, where she brings ideas, and this was one of those times where she called and said, ‘Amy would be interested in funding these mobility cars?'” Vincent shared. “To be honest, I didn’t know what she was talking about at first… but once I got it, it all clicked, and I thought, this is an amazing idea. It’s not very expensive, but it’s life-changing for these kids. As you can see at this event, everyone is ear to ear, smiles and giggling.”
Vincent then explained that LOR will often choose a project that is “particularly innovative” and/or “has a high impact for the community that it’s serving,” then follow along as it progresses.
“Those are kind of ones that we will make a little video, or do a little more interviews with the champion, that kind of thing,” Vincent commented. “So with this one, it definitely hits that. …Hooking up high schoolers in a robotics club with elementary kids with mobility issues. That’s benefiting both groups of people, and there’s a lot of learning happening. There’s a lot of community involvement, which you can tell just from being here. …It’s so inspiring.”
County 10 also chatted with Elijah Ruehl, a 7th-grade private schooler who helped with the project. Ruehl, who also enjoys 3D printing in his spare time, said he helped with wiring, calibration, and some of the coding.
“I like that this project will benefit some children,” Ruehl commented before adding that the whole experience has made him want to join Hartpence’s Robotics Club.
As for what’s next for the local Go Baby Go! crew, Peckham -Jones said they hope to expand when the statewide robotics clubs meet in March.
“I think Sam’s going to introduce (the project) to them, like Worland, Jackson. Our hope is that they catch on and they want to do it, and they can team up so this thing goes out across Wyoming.”
h/t Amber Peckham-Jones