Our mentor, Tom, invited the team to his house to help him with a service project. He and his wife have friends with a 22 month old daughter who is has severe visual impairment. She was born prematurely and that is one of the effects. Her name is Sanjanna.
We built something called a Perkins Play Space. It is basically a box with plexiglass sides and toys hanging from the top that she will be able to lay in. It is supposed to encourage her to reach out and be able to explore by touch. Tom had all the parts and our job was to build it.
First, we reviewed the plans and decided who would work on what. David, Jack, and Mr. Kerns began cutting the pieces. Jackson and Mr. Grant worked on cutting the holes in the plexiglass for the top. This is what the toys will hang from. Quintin and Tom planned for assembling.
When had been working for while, Sanjanna’s family came by to meet the team. We met her mom, dad, and brother Thomas. We learned about Sanjanna and the problems she faces and how the play space will help her.
After a quick dinner with everyone, we said goodbye to the family and got back to work. By this time, we were assembling the frames for the sides. We also used Tom’s CNC machine to write a bible verse on one of the frame pieces.
We had to leave before it was finished, but Tom doesn’t have much left to do before he delivers it to the family. Not only did we learn a lot, but it also felt really good to do something for a special little girl.
