Russell Cassevah went from walking long distances barefoot across Lego bricks to driving long distances delivering the colorful toys to children’s hospitals. The president and founder of Little Bricks charity made his most recent stop at USA Health Children’s and Women’s Hospital in Mobile, where he delivered 271 Lego playsets for patients there.
“I live for the smiles on the patients faces when they receive the Lego sets,” Cassevah told reporters outside the hospital Wednesday morning. “The nine and 10 hour drives get old, but getting here is my motivation. It gives me the fuel I need to go forward.”
The idea for this trip came about less than four months ago, Cassevah said, and with the help of TikTok creators he raised enough money to go around the country delivering the toy sets to hospitals.
“We raised $50,000 with the help of the TikTok community,” he said. “It’s a testament to how amazing the Little Bricks community is.”
Cassevah said the idea for Little Bricks came after he broke the Guinness World Record for distance walked barefoot across Lego bricks. He set the record initially for a charity in the United Kingdom with a walk of 120 feet. That initial record was broken by Dude Perfect, he said, before he reclaimed it with a walk of 2,737 feet. His record was again broken before he set it as a member of a group who walked 14,000 feet barefoot across Lego bricks.
Kim Thompson-Yates, program coordinator for the Mapp Child and Family Life Program at the hospital, said the Lego sets are a great way for patients to pass the time between treatments, or for them to feel a sense of accomplishment.
The program, Thompson-Yates said, attempts to make life in the hospital as normal as possible for the patients. The program employs therapeutic recreation specialists, teachers and other professionals who assist the patients in adapting to life inside the hospital.
Thompson-Yates said the Lego will also be used as rewards for finishing school work or for completing procedures.
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