Seven children with special needs from across Connecticut were gifted brand new ride-on cars on Friday at Plainville High School.
The ride-on cars were designed to fit their specific mobility needs through a program called “Go Baby Go.” The program began at the University of Delaware and expanded to include Central Connecticut State University.
This week, CCSU students joined students from Plainville High School and Plainville Middle School to outfit the cars.
"It is definitely an unbelievable experience. It is so moving to see our kids collaborate together and you know it is kids working for and with kids," Mark Chase, the technology education teacher at Plainville High School, said.
Each car was customized for each child and the modifications included changes to the switches, steering and adding extra support from the child’s neck or body.
Ethan Slappy, a 19-month-old from East Hartford, was one of the recipients and his mother, Margaret Slappy, helped him test drive the car.
"That was beautiful, that was good, saw him excited, pushing. That will be a good thing for him to move from one spot to another," she said.
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Students said they enjoyed customizing the cars and watching the children drive them.
“For me, to help a kid who does not have the ability to walk, it is really touching. It is a very heartfelt event,” Kyle Marquez, a junior at Plainville High School, said.
Next year, teachers at Plainville School District plan to raise the money to purchase the cars and continue helping children with special needs.
