Making more accessible toys
The Tar Heels behind the CATCH student organization modify toys for children with disabilities and donate them to local medical facilities for children who need them.
Press the play button above to watch the video
A disability shouldn’t prevent a child from having fun with toys this holiday season, and Tar Heels are working to ensure that children with fine motor disabilities or who are in a wheelchair aren’t left out of the excitement.
Carolina Adapts Toys for Children, better known as CATCH, is a UNC-Chapel Hill student group that modifies the electrical components of toys to make them more accessible for children with disabilities by adding large buttons or switches.
“It’s one of the best feelings for me, personally,” said Darci Anderson, a Carolina senior. “I’m doing this thing, I’m having fun while doing it, and it’s also putting some good into the world. Just knowing that you’re trying to create more accessible toys and a more accessible space, it’s so rewarding.”
Open to all Carolina students, CATCH meets weekly in the basement of Philips Hall and stockpiles the modified toys to donate to hospitals and children’s medical centers at the end of the semester.
“With UNC’s medical system, we’re able to outreach to different UNC-affiliated hospitals and clinical settings to get these toys to kids that need them,” Anderson said.
