Inclusive Play Travels Abroad: Adapting Toys and Sharing Knowledge in the Philippines

This summer, Penfield Children’s Center’s speech-language pathologist Vladimir Bjelic traveled to Manila, Philippines, to support and expand the Inclusive Play: Toys for All initiative—an international extension of a local effort to bring accessible, adapted toys to children with disabilities. Vladimir joined partners from Marquette University and the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee for a week of hospital visits, professional collaboration, and an impactful toy adaptation build day.

Inclusive Play: Toys For All  is a collaborative project between Penfield Children’s Center and Marquette University’s Opus College of Engineering, where Research Engineer Molly Erickson oversees the modifications that transform standard toys into switch adapted toys (accessible tools). These toys are adapted to work with large, easy-to-press switch buttons, giving children with physical and developmental challenges the ability to activate the toy themselves.

Once modified, the toys are added to the Kohl’s Building Blocks lending library at Penfield Children’s Center, where families can borrow them for home use, and Penfield’s therapists and educators use them during home visits and in classroom settings. Toys are also donated to local clinics, birth-three agencies, and schools for no cost. 

While in the Philippines, Vladimir and the team helped adapt 41 toys, trained over 45 professionals from 13 hospitals, clinics, and universities, and donated essential speech and feeding supplies to hospitals in need. The build day, hosted at the Philippine General Hospital, brought together speech-language pathologists, occupational and physical therapists, engineering faculty and students, and medical residents—all working toward one goal: making play more inclusive and accessible for children.

“I was overwhelmed with the amount of people that attended the build day and the excitement that they showed. The need for adaptive toys is enormous and it is gratifying to see others across the world interested in learning about it so they can bring adaptive toys to their communities. ” Vladimir Bjelic

The experience was both inspiring and eye-opening. In addition to the enthusiasm for adaptive toys, the team also witnessed the significant resource gaps faced by healthcare professionals in the Philippines, including long waitlists, limited access to therapy tools, and high staff turnover due to overwhelming demand. Despite these challenges, the dedication, creativity, and compassion of the local providers stood out as a powerful reminder of the universal commitment to helping children thrive.

Penfield is proud to champion the Inclusive Play Program and our ongoing collaboration with Marquette University—together making it possible for all children to experience the joy, connection, and developmental benefits of play. We extend our heartfelt thanks to Vladimir Bjelic for his generosity, leadership, and passion for moving this project forward year after year. His commitment and vision to brightening the lives of children with all abilities—both here in Milwaukee and around the world—is an inspiration to us all.

Donate now to help bring Inclusive Play to more children. penfieldchildren.org/adaptive-toys.