Ryan and Beth Miller have been working late nights and weekends for over a month to get their son’s costume Halloween-ready.
Eight-year-old Jeremy has become famous among friends and family for his elaborate Halloween costumes, built around the wheelchair he’s been using since he was 3 due to spina bifida.
And since their big reveal of this year’s costume, an Ecto-1 from “Ghostbusters” complete with working lights, sirens and speakers, the whole internet has gotten in on the fun.
As an IT Director for an auto group, Jeremy’s dad Ryan has no formal technical training, but he does have access to large boxes that used to house things like engines and windshields.
The family joke is that they can make “anything with PVC, zip ties and cardboard,” Miller told HuffPost.
For Jeremy’s Ecto-1, they also used foam board, wood, bolts and screws, hot glue, wood glue, resin, LED, 6v batteries, wiring, plexiglass, and other random household items like bowls, cups and laundry baskets.
The family’s commitment to Halloween excellence started in 2010, when Jeremy was 2 years old and using a walker. At the last minute, Ryan decided to make a Batmobile to go with Jeremy’s Batman costume.
It was such a hit at their local church’s celebration that the next year, they made a TIE Fighter to go with Jeremy’s Darth Vader costume. (Three-year-old Jeremy was devastated to eventually find out Darth is a bad guy.)
From then on, they wanted to outdo themselves with bigger and better costumes each year, culminating in this year’s “Ghostbusters” costume, which family and friends helped choose.
“One of the main reasons we do these costumes is because Jeremy does use a wheelchair and that means at school and with friends he can get left behind. So this was a way for us to make him the center of attention and help him to shine,” Miller said. “We love the smile that it brings to his face, and he really gets into character when he is in the costumes.”
They also do it to give back to their community. This year, Jeremy took his Ecto-1 costume to visit and cheer up the patients at Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego, where he has his check-ups. Ryan has also helped other parents build wheelchair costumes, including the frame for a Jurassic Park Jeep. He hopes to eventually host weekend workshops where groups of families can get together to build the wheelchair costumes with volunteers.
“I love how these costumes bring smiles to these kids’ faces and want to try and help others to have the same experience,” he said.
Over the years, Jeremy has had his wheelchair transformed into a pirate ship from “Jake and the Neverland Pirates:”
Mickey Mouse and the Main Street Electrical Parade:
Captain America’s motorcycle:
And a snowspeeder from “Empire Strikes Back:”
When he’s not helping build costumes, Miller is the coach for his son’s wheelchair sports team, which plays basketball, rugby and soccer.
“I love coaching the kids and seeing them push themselves and grow,” he said. “I know how hard they work sometimes because I see how hard Jeremy works. It’s hard not to love the kids. They are the coolest kids, and sports helps them to light up, similar to how these costumes help Jeremy to light up.”
Since the debut of Jeremy’s Ecto-1, he and his family have actually been invited to tour Sony Studios and see the original car from the old and new movies.
Just like everyone else in Jeremy’s life, we can’t wait to see what he’ll dress up as next year.
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