For the first time, the University of Central Florida challenged engineering students to get creative, forming teams to craft a new device — a modified ride-on vehicle — for a child with special needs.

“We did Zoom calls. I would send them pictures and videos of Evan and how he moved. They asked me questions about his mobility, his challenges," Casey Schaefer said about her son. “We appreciate it so much."

Despite a "picture-perfect pregnancy," two weeks in as new parents, Schaefer and her husband, Ryan, began noticing things, like a ridge on Evan's head. Later, the boy had trouble with a head lag.

Years of surgeries and doctor appointments led to the search for answers. Eventually, the family learned that Evan was born with a gene mutation, which led to a rare neurodevelopmental disorder, called Snijders Blok-Campeau syndrome.

“He has five words: hi, bye, more, Mama and Dada," she explained. “He was not able to sit up without falling over until just shy of 20 months. Because of his low tone, he has to work so much harder for every single thing."

Milestones like army crawling, albeit delayed, are cause for celebration in their home, she said.

But, re-connecting to Schafer’s past, her alma mater the University of Central Florida, is now shaping Evan’s future.

“It’s this full-circle feeling, where I was at UCF 14 years ago, I graduated," she said. "I would never guess 14 years later that they would be helping my son."

“What we want to do is open the doors for them to have an opportunity for mobility, play and participation," said Jennifer Tucker, UCF Clinical Asst. professor in physical therapy.

Tucker’s Go Baby Go! program, which began at UCF in 2015, makes the modified cars for special needs children.

“When we launched, I didn’t think we’d have any idea what we’d become," she said. “They are children diagnosed with a genetic condition, cerebral palsy, children born pre-mature. And children who have not achieved mobility, on what I would say on a 'typical timeline.'"

This year, UCF engineering students, including senior Zachary Whitacre, chose to take part in the special project, designing a car specially equipped for Evan.

“They were so excited about everything we would bring to them," said  Whitacre, who studies mechanical engineering. “Rather than working towards a grade or completion stamp at the end, we were working towards providing this vehicle for this family and this child.”

And just in time for Evan's fourth birthday, Whitacre delivered the modified ride-on car to the Schafer family in Longwood. 

The car is UCF-themed, covered in stickers and plays a number of the child's favorite tunes, including the university's fight song.

His mother said that she really connects to a certain line within the song, "With our spirit, we’ll never yield.” It reminds her of Evan's spirit and perseverance.

“For a college student, an engineering student, I don’t think they’re going to forget that experience," said Tucker.

Nor will Schaefer.

“I choose to focus on the joy, look at Evan’s face and see his joy," she said. "Evan doesn’t need to be fixed, he’s not a burden. The world needs to be fixed and the inaccessibility needs to be fixed. We're just doing our best to make his little corner of the world more accessible for him. I’ll never stop advocating for him and trying to find resources, like Go Baby Go!"