A Room Reveal for Calvin, Olivia & Emma: Spaces Built for Play, Rest, and Being Kids
Calvin is shy and funny, with a love of all things Marvel, Mario and an increasingly impressive set of signature on his favorite posters from his favorite sports teams. Go Bucs! From the first time our team met him, his love of gaming, motorsports, and a good game-day cap was impossible to miss, and it became the starting point for everything that came next.
Calvin was diagnosed with osteosarcoma in June 2025 and had to have an above knee amputation. He endured 7 surgeries due to healing complications, and has had to learn to adapt to his new life as an amputee. The entire family has been impacted by the cancer diagnosis and caretaking required, and he is learning to walk with his new prosthesis.
Calvin shares his home with his two younger sisters, Olivia and Emma, and through this project, all three kids got a reason to celebrate. While our team transformed Calvin's bedroom, we also rebuilt his and the girls' shared homeschool space down the hall, so that one install day meant new rooms for the whole family.
Our own Spencer led the design on Calvin's room. Storage came first: a fully reorganized closet, a new dresser, and drawers built directly into the bed frame, so every surface in the room could stay about Calvin instead of clutter. From there, the design leaned all the way into what he loves, a glowing "Game On" sign over a floating display shelf, a custom wood-slat accent wall anchoring his gaming corner, and personal touches like a signed cap, framed motorsports photography, and Marvel and Mario art woven throughout.
Down the hall, Olivia and Emma's new homeschool space was designed for actual, everyday use, by Ponton Interiors Principal Designer, Kylie. Twin desks under warm task lighting, a round table built for puzzles and projects, and generous storage for books, art supplies, and the occasional craft disaster. A gallery wall mixes the girls' own artwork with botanical prints and one line we hope they carry with them every day — "You are an amazing human."
These rooms were never just about the furniture. They were about giving Calvin, Olivia, and Emma spaces that are entirely, unmistakably theirs, places to rest, to play, and to simply be kids.
The reveal said it all. Olivia and Emma covered their eyes before walking in, then ran straight for their new desks. Calvin made his way through the door — cane in hand, heading straight for the drawers he'd soon be opening himself while his mom's reaction at the closet said everything words couldn't. Smiles, a few happy tears, and a family taking it all in together.
None of this happens without the people behind it. Thank you to Closet Art and Erwin Electric for lending their craft to this room, as they have to nearly every Savvy Giving by Design Tampa project since 2018, and to Color and Texture Wallpaper, E&E Warehousing, Harbor Painting Co and McDonald Contracting. Thank you to the volunteers who gave their time on install day. It takes a village, and this one showed up in full for Calvin and his sisters.
More rooms, more reveals, more stories like this one are ahead. They change lives.
With love, The Savvy Giving by Design Team
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