Seven high school robotics teams spent a day in Leawood, Kansas turning off-the-shelf ride-on toy cars into custom mobility machines for children with physical disabilities, finishing seven vehicles for seven kids by the end of the build. Each car was topped with a red bow before being handed over to its new owner.
The event, known as the GoBabyGo! Community Build, took place at the Dan & Cassidy Towriss IDEA Space KC, a STEAM fabrication lab affiliated with The Barstow School. As KCTV reports, the build has now run for four years and has grown to involve seven teams, modifying 21 cars total since it began. The host team, The Barstow School robotics team, partners with Variety KC, the nonprofit serving as the event’s primary partner, to organize the annual effort.
Team 1939 captain Emily Smith, who helped bring the build back during her freshman year, described the payoff moment that caps each event. “The cars are revealed to the children at the end of the day, and the experience is magical,” Smith said, according to the station’s report. She added that the project lets high schoolers put their robotics skills toward something tangible in their own community.
From Robotics Lab to Real-World Impact
For robotics student Sarim Rashid, the appeal is watching kids move under their own power, some for the first time. Rashid said the event gives children a chance to move independently, play with siblings, and smile, per the same account. Team 1939 coach Bree Pusey framed the build as proof that the robotics program’s mission extends well beyond competition machines…