Physical disability is no longer an impediment to getting a job, leaving the house or making a phone call. So why is it so hard for a person living with paralysis to play with their kids?
It’s a deceptively simple question without a straightforward answer. Now a Maltese advertising guru in New York thinks he’s found the solution, and he’s turned to the son of Superman to help him get the word out.
Corel Theuma’s Adaptoys R/C car looks just like any other remote control car. But instead of a joystick, users exhale into a straw to move the car forward and inhale to get it to reverse, and tilt their head to turn it left or right.
Their Adaptoys ball pitching machine is similarly intuitive, allowing users to launch balls using just their voice.
“My creative partner and I noticed that while technology has helped improve the lives of so many people living with paralysis, play was unfortunately forgotten,” Mr Theuma, a creative director at award-winning advertising agency 360i, told timesofmalta.com.
All work and no play....Corel Theuma thinks paralysis shouldn't be an impediment to playing. Photo: Cris Benitah
With the help of technology firm Axios NYC, they built a few prototypes. Soon enough, they had found a partner in the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation. The foundation was set up by the late actor with the aim of improving the lives of people living with paralysis.
The partners are now crowdfunding to raise enough money to get the Adaptoys concept off the ground. They say they are not interested in selling the toys.
“The plan is to give away 100 Adaptoy R/C cars with the money raised,” Mr Theuma said. “The more money we get, the more toys we can produce and give away for free.”
They are relying on the Reeve Foundation to raise awareness and identify individuals whose lives would be improved with an Adaptoy. And though the toys will initially go to people in the USA, Mr Theuma is understandably interested in seeing them being used in his homeland too.
“We’d love, to bring this to the rest of the globe, including beautiful Malta,” he said.
The Reeve Foundation have roped in former college American football star Eric LeGrand for an Adaptoys promo video (see above). Mr LeGrand was paralysed while making a tackle in an October 2010 game and is widely recognised for his advocacy on behalf of people living with paralysis.
To play a part in making Adaptoys a long-term project, donate here.