Junior makes toys for child cancer patients
When junior Terri Wilken learned that her aunt and grandmother passed away due to leukemia, she immed
iately wanted to know how she could help. This sparked her interest in creating a toy for child cancer patients called Squish-n-spy.
“[My father] told me about how he always saw [my aunt and grandmother] in pain and this made me want to do something to help cancer patients,” Wilken said.
Wilken, who described her creation as a distraction toy, wanted to produce something that would divert patients’ attention from the pain caused by the disease and chemotherapy.
“It helps keep their mind distracted from the pain they are facing,” Wilken said.
The Squish-n-spy is a type of I-spy game, where players try to locate various objects in a pool of beads encased in a clear vinyl pouch. Patients use their fingers to uncover 32 objects that are listed on an attached paper.
Wilken modified her toy to be more hygienic for patients suffering weakened immune systems. Wilken learned that heat sealing the vinyl pouch would be more suitable than sewing it due to bacteria that can reside in the thread.
Although some flaws were difficult to adjust, Wilken continued to improve her product.
“The creating process was tricky because I had to make many prototypes to figure out what I finally wanted and what would work best,” Wilken said.
Wilken distributed Squish-n-spy to hospitals, clinics and individuals. Her business is a non-profit organization.
“Seeing these kids really happy while they play with the Squish-n-spy makes me feel really content inside because I know that I helped make an impact for the better in someone’s life,” Wilken said.
