HAVERHILL, Mass. — Every fall Tom Hardy puts his heart and soul into his son’s Halloween costume.
"It's phenomenal just watching it come together the last two or three days," Tom said.
Tom’s son, Tommy, has cerebral palsy. For seven years, Tom has designed costume for Tommy’s wheelchair.
MORE: Dad builds son with cerebral palsy amazing Halloween costumes
Every year, dad tries to top himself. In 2016, we showed you his X-wing fighter from Star Wars. Last year, Tommy’s wheelchair was transformed into a dragon from Game of Thrones.
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This year? Tommy will be pulling over trick-or-treaters in LEGO Movie dune buggy, complete with blue lights and a bumper that says Haverhill Police Department.
"Just to see the look on his face and the excitement, it's a wonderful feeling," Tom said.
Mike Clohecy helps tom build the costumes. This year it took around 80 hours and $100 to complete.
"Oh it's a lot of fun," Clohecy said. "Tom brings us an idea, we talk about it, then he brings us a chair and it's off to the races."
One of the fun things is to find all the household items incorporated into this costume. The engine on the back of the dune buggy is made up of pieces of Styrofoam, an aluminum cooking tray, and little pieces of paper towel holders cut and spray-painted black. The hubcaps, they're just cardboard pizza trays.
Tommy is unable to speak, so he’s not able to tell his dad how happy he is. But Tom knows every time his son smiles.
"He loves it so much. I think he feels like, without telling me, he loves this time of year," Tom said. "He feels like a typical kid, being pushed in a Halloween setting when everyone else is dressing up, he can just be a kid, not be seen as a kid in a wheelchair."
The hardest things is after Halloween, when Tom and his friends have to dissemble and take apart whatever they've created. But Tom said this year might be different. He says this time, they might just cut it down the middle, that way they're able to save it for future use.
MORE: Dad transforms son's wheelchair into elaborate Halloween costumes