Twin Cities boy gets Star Wars-themed wheelchair costume
A Twin Cities boy living with a rare form of muscular dystrophy received a gift from a galaxy far, far away this Halloween season.
Eleven-year-old Dash Stanton knew something special was hidden beneath a blue sheet Sunday morning at the Minnesota Fire Museum.
"I feel like this is going to be very, very cool," Dash Stanton said before the reveal.
A self-described Star Wars fan who recently finished watching every movie in the franchise, Dash Stanton eagerly waited to see what had been built for him.
When the cover finally came off, he was greeted by a custom N-1 Starfighter complete with a Grogu, better known as Baby Yoda, figure. The spacecraft attaches to his power wheelchair, turning it into a ride fit for a Jedi.
The creation came from Magic Wheelchair, an Oregon-based nonprofit that designs and builds custom wheelchair costumes at no cost to families.
"It was way cooler than I thought it would be," Dash Stanton said. "Honestly, it's very, very sick."
For his parents, the moment was especially meaningful.
About a decade ago, they noticed their son was not meeting the physical milestones typical for most children his age.
"After neurologists and physical therapy and all this, we ended up finding out that he had SMA, which is something we had never even heard of before," said his mother, Amanda Stanton.
SMA, or spinal muscular atrophy, is a rare neuromuscular disorder that affects muscle movement.
Despite the diagnosis, Dash Stanton has remained active. He participates in musical theater and excels in power soccer, a sport designed for athletes who use power wheelchairs.
"We've hit a much more stable point. He's doing really well," Amanda Stanton said.
As for Dash Stanton, his immediate goal is a little less ambitious than piloting a starfighter across the galaxy.
He just wants to be the coolest kid out trick-or-treating this Halloween.
The surprise comes as local firefighters kick off the annual Fill the Boot campaign benefiting the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Funds raised help support people living with muscular dystrophy, ALS and other neuromuscular diseases.
