Imaginative Dad Creates Special Powerchair

When the dad of toddler, Alejandro, from Illinois was told it would take five years to get his son a powered wheelchair, he decided to take matters into his own hands.  Two year old Alejandro has a degenerative genetic disease, spinal muscular atrophy.  He’s bright and curious and loves to explore, but his condition means his body is weak and he requires a wheelchair to get around.  The cost of a brand new chair was out of their budget so his dad, Shea, decided that his best option was to make Alejandro a custom powered chair himself.

Starting From Scratch

Using a second hand adult powerchair he found on the internet, Shea began constructing the special chair.  Alejandro has very limited and weak movement in some of his toes and fingers, so it was important that the controls were suited to his abilities.  Shea added unique foot pedals that allowed Alejandro to manoeuvre the chair himself by attaching little sandals to a specially designed, touch sensitive pedal.

Exploring

Now Alejandro can use the small amount of power he has in his toes to move around, and he’s quickly learnt how to operate his new wheelchair.  His dad Shea comments: “It’s been truly thrilling for us as parents to watch as Alejandro persistently works at learning to control his own movement.  His motivation is amazing.  For a kid like Alejandro there is nothing quite like finally being able to explore your environment all by yourself.”