Momentum - The Magazine for Virginia Tech Mechanical Engineering Vol. 4 No. 1 Spring 2019 | Page 25

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appreciation for how to look
at projects from different per-
spectives. “One of our chal-
lengers is only able to move
one arm and it’s difficult
for him to zip up his pants
without assistance, so we
made a device he can throw
over his neck that will allow
him to zip himself. Another
person loved to fish, but had
a difficult time reeling, so we
made a device that attaches
to his wheelchair that assists
him in reeling in fish. Many
of these things are things you
take for granted and being
able to restore that ability to
someone who has lost it gives
you a sense of pride in being
able to do that.”
The student team maintains
contact with QL+ represen-
tatives who support them
with guidance when and
where needed. The club has
also reached out to CalPoly
where a very successful club
has been operating for several
years.
Beyond finding challeng-
ers, Biggers’ biggest issue
is finding funding. “We’ve
really relied on support from
family and friends through a
crowdfunding site,” he said.
“Our treasurer is looking at
sponsorship opportunities
from companies and we hope
that evolves over time.”
Biggers stresses that as new
as the group is, it couldn’t
exist without extensive
communication and coordi-
nation between members of
the executive board.
“This couldn’t happen with
one person,” Biggers said. “It’s
taken a community of people
to get funding, to find the
challengers, and to work with
them to make their project a
reality. Also, the support of
our faculty advisors, (associate
professor of practice) Robin
Ott (mechanical engineering)
and (collegiate assistant
professor) Christopher Arena
(biomedical engineering and
mechanics), have been really
helpful.”
The faculty advisors have
helped Biggers and his team
overcome one of their biggest
hurdles – finding space to do
the work – but the struggle
continues.
Watch
the team
prepare a
mold of
Ben's arm.
“Money hasn’t been a real
challenge yet,” Biggers said.
“We’ve been very lucky
to have the support of the
local community, family, and
friends. Now we need to put
plans in place for the future
to get storage space and
workspace.”
To support the VT QL+ student
organization as part of Giving Day, call
1-800-533-1144.
Or click their crowdfunding site
Team Website
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