{"id":50695,"date":"2022-10-14T08:00:03","date_gmt":"2022-10-14T12:00:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.solidworks.com\/solidworksblog\/?p=50695"},"modified":"2022-10-27T16:47:32","modified_gmt":"2022-10-27T20:47:32","slug":"music-is-magic-the-reveal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.solidworks.com\/solidworksblog\/2022\/10\/music-is-magic-the-reveal.html","title":{"rendered":"Music is Magic: The Reveal"},"content":{"rendered":"

Children with disabilities don\u2019t always get to participate the same way other kids do. Physical or cognitive impairments can make it difficult for a kiddo in a wheelchair and his or her family to engage in certain activities, or to be seen for who they are beyond their condition.<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s SOLIDWORKS Magic Wheelchair recipient Savannah<\/a> has a complicated medical history and sensory issues that present challenges for her and her parents. Her parents, Lacey and Mark, have always done their best to give Savannah the same experiences as other children. Living in Salem, MA, a.ka. The Halloween Capital of the World, Halloween is a huge part of their lives, and they work hard to create amazing costumes for Savannah so she can participate as well. But they\u2019ve always wanted to introduce Savannah to more people and help people understand what living with disabilities is all about. Once they were connected to the SOLIDWORKS Magic Wheelchair build team and shared their costume and reveal ideas, it was the start of creating an extra-special, extra-inclusive experience for everyone.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The Reveal<\/strong><\/h1>\n

Salem is famous for a lot of things and one of them is being almost unnavigable in October. There are so many tourists from near and far coming to visit, actually driving into the city (let alone parking) can be impossible. For the reveal, carpooling was a must. SOLIDWORKS partner TriMech<\/a> has an office in Peabody, MA, one town over from Salem.\u00a0 They graciously opened their doors to the SOLIDWORKS build team, and team members traveled to the office and worked out carpooling details there.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The team arrived at the reveal spot, Salem Willows Park, at 3pm to set up. Salem Willows Park is a small lovely park with a stunning ocean view, beautiful willow trees, and, most importantly in October, plenty of parking. While the team put the costume together and did last-minute checks, park visitors walking by stopped to admire it and ask what it was, what it was for, how it had been built, \u201cWhat\u2019s a magic wheelchair?\u201d and more.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Savannah and her parents arrived at the park at 4pm. By then, the costume was covered in a Magic Wheelchair drape and members of Savannah\u2019s extended family were gathered for the big reveal. I presented Savannah\u2019s parents with a collection of gifts and extras the team put together for them.<\/p>\n

There was an extra BIGmack speech output button, a device Savannah uses every day. With this button, Savannah\u2019s parents or teachers can record words or phrases and Savannah can push the button to respond to questions or be heard. Nicolas Lefebvre had experimented with the BIGmack to figure out how the costume\u2019s electronics could function in a way that was familiar to Savannah. Now the family had two.<\/p>\n

Team seamstress Rachael Naoum sewed up an outfit fit for a pop princess. She made a dress out of a sequins-covered material for a sensory element that Savannah could touch with her hands. She made a bow for Savannah\u2019s signature scrunchy out of the same material. Rachael also created a series of bibs that were sewn to look like shirts with edges that could be tucked into a cute black vest. When Savannah heads out for the big parade, she would sparkle like a pop star.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The final gift was a trophy Albert Hernandez made using 3D Creator and xDesign. It was the very first thing he\u2019d created when the team learned Savannah\u2019s costume theme. The team also gave the family a collection of tumblers with the \u201cTeam Savannah\u201d on them and a collection of \u201cTeam Savannah\u201d t-shirts for their friends and family, along with a bandana for their dog, Georgia.<\/p>\n

Then it was time for the big reveal. Albert and Annie Cheung took hold of the costume drape and the crowd counted down from five. Savannah doesn\u2019t like sudden, sharp noises, so the team waved their hands in silent applause while the family gasped. Lacey turned away from the crowd and the cameras, happy tears welling in her eyes. It was exactly what they wanted.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Savannah communicates with the world using the BIGmack, a big red voice output button, and she loves music. When her parents, well-seasoned costume makers themselves, were thinking of a theme for her Magic Wheelchair costume, they decided to mix her love of music with the way she uses her voice and chose the judges chair from Savannah\u2019s favorite popular singing competition, NBC’s The Voice<\/em>. When a judge on\u00a0The Voice<\/em> hears a singer they like, they slam on a big red button. When the button is pressed, the chair turns around and lights go off. A fairly simple design with interesting electronics.<\/p>\n

The SOLIDWORKS Magic Wheelchair build team took this theme and, like they always do, cranked it up to 11. The costume is a scale replica of the chair from the show, complete with cup holders for the aforementioned tumblers. For Savannah\u2019s safety the chair does not spin, but the foam costume is designed to fit around her wheelchair and give her easy access to the red button, which controls everything.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Through an app designed by Chinloo Lama and Yun Li, Savannah\u2019s parents can control the colors of the lights on the costume, the songs it plays from a playlist made up of Savannah\u2019s favorite music, and the text that lights up across the LED panel in the base. All Savannah has to do is hit the button, and the chair responds. Dan Deoreo built in a light panel behind the button (which is also lit up) to catch Savannah\u2019s attention and give her some enjoyment\u2014she is legally blind, but is very attracted to light. The panel also houses the speakers for Savannah\u2019s music, so she can dance along and enjoy.<\/p>\n

While Lacey wiped her eyes, the team took the podium off the front of the costume base and helped her place Savannah into her wheelchair. The small group of family and build team members spent quiet, private time admiring the costume, taking photos, and giving Savannah space to be comfortable.<\/p>\n

Then it was time to reveal Savannah\u2019s new look to the world.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The Parade<\/strong><\/h1>\n

What\u2019s the best way to show off an insane costume when you live in the Halloween capital of the world? At a Halloween parade! Every year the Salem Chamber of Commerce hosts the Haunted Happenings Grand Parade, meant to officially kick off the Halloween season in the city. Over 10,000 spectators attend. Savannah and her parents were huge fans of the parade but had never been able to participate in it. With Magic Wheelchair, they could.<\/p>\n

This year, Dassault Systemes and the 3D<\/strong>EXPERIENCE Lab became parade sponsors. The SOLIDWORKS Magic Wheelchair build team was one of the 90 groups marching in the procession. Rachael Naoum and Chinloo Lama held the team\u2019s banner, \u201cMagic Wheelchair Presented by Dassault Systemes\u201d and were closely followed by Sal Lama and Rachael\u2019s partner, Levon Amiryan, who were pulling the star of the show, Savannah.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Pulling? Magic Wheelchair costumes are pushed, aren\u2019t they? Normally yes, and Savannah\u2019s costume is designed with an opening in the back for her parents to hold onto her wheelchair handle and push her. But the parade route featured large swaths of old cobblestones from Salem\u2019s colonial days: not the best terrain for a costume on casters with little suspension. Knowing the route would cause Savannah\u2019s wheelchair and costume to shake in a way that would make her uncomfortable, Sal Lama dove back into designing and created a wagon to pull the costume and Savannah along. He added rubber wheels to make going over cobblestones less of a hassle.<\/p>\n

The rest of the team followed Savannah and her parents, ready to give out 700 goody bags to the spectators. The bags were filled with sensory toys, stickers, SOLIDWORKS light-up pins, and Magic Wheelchair flyers. When they (very quickly) ran out of bags, the team handed out Magic Wheelchair sticker sheets.<\/p>\n

The sky was dark by the time the parade got going, making the lights on Savannah\u2019s costume shine even brighter. As the group marched down the parade route, people on the sidelines gasped, oohed, ahhed, and cheered. The lights on Savannah\u2019s chair changed color and pattern when she hit the button, and every time that button was hit, the crowd went wild.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

As Savannah passed, people in the crowd reacted with delight. \u201cWhat is that?\u201d \u201cHow did they make that?\u201d \u201cThat is so cool!\u201d \u201dNice chair!\u201d were commonly heard. \u201cShe\u2019s so cool!\u201d one woman exclaimed upon seeing Savannah in her costume. \u201cShe\u2019s way cooler than I am!\u201d All along the parade route people chanted, \u201cTeam Savannah! Go Savannah!\u201d and cheered, whistled, and whooped for her.<\/p>\n

Savannah smiled throughout and her parents were overwhelmed at the outpouring of affection and attention from the crowd. Their daughter receiving so much positive attention and praise from strangers, people seeing how great Savannah is and cheering for her and being inspired by her, was something they always wanted and worked towards.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

At the end of the parade, the rechargeable battery in Savannah\u2019s costume ran down. The team provided the family with extras, and Sal, Chinloo, and Annie walked Savannah and her parents\u2019 home. They showed Mark and Lacey how to take the costume apart and put it back together, and took the wagon with them back to the lab. Mark and Lacey expressed how grateful they were for the costume, the work the build team put into giving their family this experience, and Magic Wheelchair as a whole.<\/p>\n

Savannah is going to wear her costume at school and for her normal trick or treating route this year. It is designed to fit through a standard doorway, and she will get a lot of mileage out of it. Her parents are already talking about how they can maybe use the base and create a witch\u2019s cauldron for next year\u2019s Halloween.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Near the end of the parade as the team marched down Salem\u2019s famous Essex Street, Albert said to me, \u201cIt is cool hearing everybody saying, \u2018that\u2019s so cool!\u2019\u201d This was the fourth Magic Wheelchair costume the built by the SOLIDWORKS team, and it was the first time since the pandemic they\u2019d been able to see the general public react to their hard work. Apart from our first reveal at Monster Jam in 2018, the other two reveals had been more intimate, with mainly friends and family of the costume recipients in attendance. This was the first time in a long time others could reacted to the costume, and it was from a much larger group of people. The appreciation from Savannah\u2019s family and from the parade spectators was more than the team had expected, and it made them feel great.<\/p>\n

Another person walking in the parade sidled up to Albert and me while we were talking. \u201cAre you guys thinking about doing the parade again next year?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n

Unable to stop smiling, I said, \u201cWe\u2019ll talk about it.\u201d<\/p>\n