By contributing writer Jackie Couto (’28)

While playing with toys may seem easy for kids with disabilities, it’s often not. Brian Tollar, a senior at Jamesville-Dewitt High School, is an engineer and inventor of toys that are adaptable for children with disabilities. 

Tollar has a website – techbybrian.com – where he sells adaptable pre-existing toys, and original toys he invented. He has sold over a thousand different toys to children across the country. Some of his most popular toys are Switch Adapted Remote Control Car, Switch Adapted Water Gun, and Switch Adapted Nerf Gun. 

Tollar plans on pursuing engineering in college but hasn’t thought about future plans for his business. “Starting to adapt toys just kinda happened, my mom is a speech teacher and deals with kids with disabilities on a regular basis,” Tollar says. “I know how many disabled kids are frustrated by the amount of unadaptable toys for them. I knew I had to change that.” 

Although Tollar hasn’t decided the future for his business he wants to keep adapting more toys. “I’m always looking for more toys to adapt and people who want me to adapt specific toys,” Tollar said.

Tollar adapts toys by rewiring and adds switches so it’s easier to play with. For example pulling a water gun takes fine motor skills. “If someone doesn’t have those they can use a gross motor movement,” Tollar explains. His motive is so no one gets left out and all different types of children can play with these toys.

It started out with adapting a couple toys and giving them out to family friends. “They were like ‘you need to make a business out of this.’ So I did,” Tollar recalls. Tollar is so grateful for this new found business as he has gotten to communicate with so many different people as far away as Texas. “It has gotten me out of this bubble of public high school.”