In Westerly, Rhode Island a high school construction class, came to the rescue for five year old, Ryder Kilam. Ryder uses a wheelchair, so just leaving the house can be a timely process. His parents tried using a patio umbrella to cover Ryder during in climate weather waiting for the school bus. This was not a strong enough solution, that‘s when Ryder‘s dad reached out to his community for help on Facebook.
Dan McKena, the high school construction teacher sent the Kilam‘s an email saying, “we are in”. Rather than an umbrella, the class set out to build a shelter to be placed at the end of the home‘s driveway. Not only did the students learn about construction, but also the importance of giving back to the community.
The project took several weeks and was done at a swift pace, so the shelter would be ready for the winter. Home Depot, donated $300 worth of materials to supplement some costs picked up by Ryder‘s family. Now Ryder has a safe, dry spot to wait for the school bus. He likes it so much that he goes in there, even when he doesn‘t have to wait for the bus. At a time when there is so many bad things going on, I say WTH, let‘s all think of Dan McKena‘s class and Ryder and help out others in our community when needed.
