SOLON, Ohio — At a workshop space in Solon, volunteers are hard at work soldering and tinkering, transforming toys bought off the shelf into powerful playthings that can be used by everyone. Nonprofit RePlay for Kids adapts and modifies toys for children with disabilities, altering certain buttons and switches to make them accessible.
Twenty-five years in, director of operations Natalie Wardega says the organization has modified about 22,000 toys, which are given to kids free of charge.
“I've had families that for the child's birthday, they'll receive maybe a Tickle Me Elmo, but they can't activate the toy,” Wardega said. “So what will happen is they'll contact me and we'll switch adapt it for them, so then that child can interact with that toy. So it's very rewarding.”
Wardega explained that generally, the children they adapt toys for don’t have the fine motor skills needed to activate the toys, instead needing an external switch. Those switches can come in a variety of forms, including a sip and puff switch which is utilized via mouth, a head tilt switch that people can use by tapping their head against a button, or a proximity switch which is activated by a hand passing over it.
These alterations can be difficult to afford for families, which is why the toys worked on by RePlay for Kids are provided for free. Wardega said the nonprofit works directly with families as well as clinicians, school districts and libraries to get the toys to children.
“Adapted toys are very expensive. They are three or four times the price of a normal toy. So if they're not sure if it's going to work, but then they want to try this out, we are a great resource," Wardega said. "They can request three or four toys and see if that's going to benefit the child.”
Like many 12-year-olds, Drayden Gibbs enjoys Star Wars, movies and Marvel. But before RePlay for Kids, his mother, Char Gibbs, wasn’t sure her son even liked toys.
“It has allowed us to see that Drayden actually does enjoy playing with toys,” she said of the toys provided through RePlay for Kids.
Drayden was diagnosed with cerebral palsy after he was shaken as a baby. Adopted by Char and her family at the age of three, she said the toys have helped him with therapies and enjoying down time.
"People with different abilities, different needs, they're not to be excluded from the world,” Gibbs said. “They're not a puzzle piece that doesn't fit — they do fit. It's just you have to figure out how. And you know, RePlay's been able to do that for him.”
RePlay for Kids board member Michele Kay believes every child deserves to play.
“I think that the fact that a child can't do something should never be in their mindset,” she said. “The kids should always think that, ‘I can do what I can do, and I will just do my best at whatever I can do.’ We then help the child do their best. And that is be a kid and play and have fun.”
That mission of supporting kids is one of the reasons why the Cleveland Cavaliers organization wanted to get involved.
“You want to uplift every person, no matter their background or where they’re living or where they come from,” said Lucy Veres, director of community impact at the Cleveland Cavaliers. “So I think volunteering for us is a way to give back.”
For Cavs IT department member and frequent RePlay volunteer Stephen Allison, it’s all about making a child smile. When 3News spoke with him, he was making adjustments to a Barbie Dreamplane.
“If a child loves a toy and they can't play with that toy because of a specific issue, I think that’s what they want. They don't want a separate toy that's designed for them, they are interested in the toy that every other kid’s using,” he said. “So creating that button — they make buttons in house — [it’s] very impressive what they're doing here.”
If you want to help support RePlay for Kids or if you are in need of adapted toys, you can learn more about donating toys or volunteering in their workshop on their website. On Sunday, Oct. 27, they will also be hosting a 5K fundraiser in Medina, and their annual toy giveaway takes place in November.