Graham kids build aquatic wheelchairs for city pool

GRAHAM, Texas (KAUZ) - Students at Open Door Christian School helped make a difference in Graham by building two aquatic wheelchairs for the city pool.

The two wheelchairs will allow kids with lower body disabilities to not only enjoy the pool but the splashpad as well.

ODCS students heard about this need at the Graham Municipality Swimming Pool and closed out there school year by working on this project.

“We really want to embrace the idea that God has given us so much that we have to give to others” Open Door Christian School Stem Teacher, Claire Meschkat said.

“There’s a lot of children who might be wheelchair bound that are unable to utilize the resources that we have here like our splash pad. So, our students decided to build some aquatic wheelchairs to help solve that problem. We look for opportunities to bless others and doing this wheelchair project was one way that we could do that” Meschkat said.

Open Door Christian School teaches its students that no matter their age, they can make an impact on the world big or small.

It took the students about a week to build the two chairs.

“It made us feel happy” ODCS student, Piper Meschkat said

“We knew that some people who might have wheelchairs can’t go in the splash pad and we thought maybe that made them sad. So, we built some so they can be happy and play in the splash pads” Meschkat said.

The Graham City pool has systems in place for those with lower body disabilities to get in the pool, but it was not until now that they have a way of providing access to the splash pads as well.

“Well I think it’s a great idea that these kids came up with that idea to be thinking of others in that situation,” Graham City Pool Manager, Kris Corbett said.

“Several of these kids that are in this class actually are in our swim programs here at the pool, in fact, a couple of them are even competing in a meet tomorrow. So, its fun to see them give back to their community and do something they enjoy doing” Corbett said.

The small aquatic wheelchair was named “Noah’s Arc” and the bigger one “Lord’s Blessing”.

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