Rolloween: Volunteers create costumes for Montreal children with reduced mobility

Many Montrealers had a spooktacular night trick or treating on Thursday, including seven-year-old Harold Mazas and his mom, Marie-Agnès Mazas.

His impressive Lego superbike costume was created by Bob Murphy, and a team of volunteers who make up “Duct Tapers Anonymous”. They help create costumes for children with reduced mobility. It’s all part of Rolloween: The Halloween costumes-on-wheels project.

The initiative began in 2018 when the team created a dragon and stone castle for a boy named Émile, who named the costume “Chad the dragon.” In 2019, the costume was adapted for another child.

“We started this back in 2018 with Concordia University, the makers there. We wanted to create costumes for children with mobility issues. We got our team together, they got their team together, and we built the first costume,” said Murphy.

“Percy the Mars rover,” was another creation brought to life in 2023.

This year, the team of volunteers completed two costumes, an ice cream truck for a young girl named Florence, and Harold’s costume, “Supersonic”. It was named by him, ensuring that he plays a role in the creative development of his superbike.

“I chose a motorcycle because I like vehicles,” said Harold.

“The kids stay as co-creators, naming the costumes, and the names are attached to plaques that remain there forever,” explained Murphy.

His mother says his costume was inspired by his love for toys.

“Harold loves toys. He loves LEGO and everything that has movement—planes, cars, and so on. I think he spotted that motorbike somewhere in a LEGO book, and it’s his dream motto. So when we asked what sort of costume he would like, he immediately said, ‘This is the motto I want,'” she said.

Harold said that all his friends at school liked his costume.

“They said I was the best costume in the class,” he expressed eagerly.

“That was really lovely and super exciting. I think, you know, it made him feel really proud and just amazed to see how other people reacted. All the teachers and kids were coming in at the same time, and it felt really nice to see everyone being so impressed by the costume and how much it would mean to him,” described his mother.

The team has been devoting their Sundays, and the week leading up to Halloween in order to design and build the costume in their workshop. And they cover the cost of all the materials.

“It’s our way of possibly giving back, and we call ourselves makers. Makers make things. We have to keep creating; we have to keep… And if we can create something, we can build and fix something that is beneficial to others. I know better customers than these kids,” said Murphy.

“All the volunteers do everything. They have the best ideas; they’re the heart of this project. I just have the space and the tools for it. Maybe some of them know how, but they’re the creators. The kids are the creators, and all the volunteers—friends and family—are part of that,” he added.

The real treat this Halloween is seeing the impact they have on children.

“We get very emotional when we see the reaction. Harold showed up a couple of days ago at the workshop to do a tryout, and he had a card for us and a bag of candies and some Halloween pencils, and a whole bunch of us started crying. We don’t cry; we just get very emotional and tearful, and tears run down our cheeks, but we’re not crying,” said Murphy.

It’s safe to say that Harold had a SUPER Halloween.

When asked why he loves Halloween, he said “Because we can trick or treat candies.”

“It’s lovely. We have a beautiful neighborhood and a wonderful atmosphere here. I think it’s really nice to be able to do that all together as a family and with our neighborhood. It’s also really accessible for him. There are activities he cannot do in a wheelchair, and this one is a special moment among every other kid, and that’s quite unique in the year,” expressed Mazas.

“It’s a proud moment for them and for us, and it’s going to be a long-lasting memory for Harold, for sure,” she added.