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An Anonymous Coward writes:

Katelyn Vincik's parents said their daughter was born with a left hand that was not fully formed. While Katelyn has always known her left hand was a little different than her right, it has not slowed her down.

"She's very determined, she does everything," said Kimberly Vincik. "It's never held her back."

[...] Katelyn has been on a waiting list for more than a year for a functional prosthetic. "It has not been FDA-approved. It's basically tied up in approval and legal," said Katelyn's father, Casey.

Her parents said Katelyn was offered a cosmetic prosthetic hand, but the little girl found it too heavy and generally disliked the way it looked.

[...] Determined to find a hand for Katelyn, the family drove from Victoria to Clear Lake and met with Branch Librarian Jim Johnson and Innovation Lab trainer Patrick Ferrell.

"We let them know we don't know anything about prosthetics. We've never done this before. We just know how to run a 3-D printer," said Ferrell. The fact the lab never printed a hand didn't stop Ferrell and a team of volunteers from diving into the project.

[...] The Vinciks said Katelyn took to her new hand like she'd had it all her life. Kimberly Vincik said some of Katelyn's first words after receiving the hand were directed to her younger sister, Lacey.

"(She said) 'Lacey, we can hold hands now,'" Vincik said.

The polylactic acid material used to make Katelyn's hand was even dyed in Katelyn's favorite colors: pink and purple. The prosthetic attaches to Katelyn's arm and a pulley system opens and closes the hand when Katelyn bends her arm.

Pretty amazing stuff these days eh?

Link: http://www.click2houston.com/news/investigates/parents-search-to-find-prosthetic-hand-for-daughter-ends-at-library

Here's a link to the library: http://www.hcpl.net/content/jocelyn-h-lee-innovation-lab-0

Original Submission