Zoey Ewer, 4, cannot walk on her own, but a customized car is helping her move by herself at Lincoln Early Learning Academy in Wausau. Other district students use the car as well, and staff say it supports independent mobility along with cognitive and social engagement.
Zoey's mother, Laura Ewer-Swarick, said the car gives her daughter a chance to move without someone else controlling the whole thing. Zoey has trisomy 9 mosaic, which the family learned about after she was born and spent time in the NICU at Aspirus, and she also has a chronic lung disease. Her older brother, Mason, said he has noticed a difference in how she plays.
The district's physical therapist worked with Fox Valley Technical College to customize the car, a job that took a full day. The build added a high-back seat support for students who have trouble holding their posture, plus harness and lateral supports to keep them seated securely.
Students move the car by pressing a red button while the therapist, Lodahl, uses a remote. With Zoey, the work focuses on starting and stopping and on heading where she wants to go. Lodahl called it early power mobility and said learning a powered device young can open doors to a power wheelchair or another mobility device later.
Lodahl hopes the car can take part in the district's track meet in the spring, so students who cannot walk or run can still be included. The therapist travels with the car to different schools and says teachers and families have responded well.
