Teen makes 3-D printed hand for kindergartener

SAN ANTONIO – It was a special day for one San Antonio kindergartner as he got a new 3-D printed hand on Monday.

Patrick Perez, 5, got his new hand presented to him at the School of Science and Technology.

It was a bit of a whim that he was able to get the hand, his mother said.

"I sent some emails, we chatted back and forth, and they said, 'We would be more than happy to make your son a hand.' And I was just ecstatic," Alejandra Perez said.

But it was not the staff at the school who made the hand, it was a ninth-grade student.

"I went on the programming software for the 3-D printer and I scaled down the template of the hand,” Brian Haddock said. "It took an extra couple weeks for the 3-D printer to print all the individual pieces."

The smile on Patrick’s face showed his excitement.

"I bend my broken one. The one that's real - this one."

Haddock said he is looking to help more people. Click here for the school’s website.


About the Authors:

Diana Winters is a San Antonio-area native, Emmy award-winning and GLAAD-nominated journalist who loves the Alamo City. She is the executive producer of SA Live, creator of South Texas PRIDE and co-creator of Texas Eats.