When Ethan Brown was born, he was perfect to his parents. The only thing that didn’t work quite right was his left hand. The cause was not clearly known, so his mother, Melina, began looking for and joining support groups on Facebook.
Melina saw people were talking about a group called e-Nable, and she agreed to volunteer. She began volunteering in June of last year. Shortly after, e-Nable gave her and Ethan the gift they had been searching for.
“All they needed were three little photos,” Melina said. “They use the photos of the child’s had to gather measurements to set up a volunteer and recipient. They create the files and print the hand; the start and finish is done within a week.”
E-nable is not a single location, but a worldwide connection of volunteers and 3-D printers that provide hope to those who have lost it.
E-nable set up children and adults with 3-D printers stationed all over the world that print hands specifically designed for each person.
“Recently, we were contacted by a girl in Malaysia who needed a hand,” Melina said. “The files were sent by Friday and she had the hand by Sunday. It’s amazing, they just come in the mail ready for use.”
At a table at the Overall Company, Melina, Ethan and Ethan’s sister, Emily, chatter away like any family. Melina begins to pull out several different hands in bold greens and reds from her purse. Ethan’s eyes light up once she brings out a fire engine red hand that resembles a prop from a Transformers movie.
“The red one is my favorite,” Ethan said. “I like it because now that I have it, nobody makes fun of me anymore.”
Melina maneuvers the hands while Ethan begs to retrieve a “really cool” hand from the car. Each hand looks completely different and is designed to specifically help each person and meet his or her particular needs.
“All of the hands are free,” Melina said. “They let each person pick out which color they want, and the hands are shipped out so fast. We even have schools involved in printing hands.”
A couple of the hands are beginning to fall apart, but are continuously repaired by Melina.
“Ethan’s sister, Emily, sat on one of his hands once, and sometimes people are a little rough with them,” Melina said. “But worse case, we just get another one printed.”
Emily Brown is in fourth grade and Ethan is in third grade at Northside Intermediate School in Opelika.
“People used to tease Ethan before he had a new hand,” Emily said. “But now, everyone thinks it’s so cool and they want to be his bodyguard. My grade actually gets to help print hands now.”
Emily has also started a group with a couple of children in her school called Envrachange, which strives to save the earth from pollution.
Emily and Ethan spend their time making a rope swing at their home and playing outside, their playtime is enhanced by his durable new hand.
The printers and volunteers are amazing and go all out for these kids,” Melina said. “They made a Frozen-themed hand with a little girl’s name on the side and another one featured a silver briefcase to give it a secret agent feel.”
E-Nable has quickly grown and within one week has acquired 187 new volunteers and has requests for 82 new hands.
“E-Nable has completely changed our life, and Aaron Brown and Jeremy Simon are amazing, they are two of the people who printed Ethan’s hands,” Melina said. “This organization really makes a difference.”
Ethan and Melina are able to meet others who have been affected by e-Nable by visiting fairs in places, such as Orlando, Florida, with Ethan assuming the role of volunteer and testing different hands.
“We were at a conference at Johns Hopkins (Hospital) a while back, and Ethan met a recipient who was an adult and gave Ethan one of his hands to grow into,” Melina said. “They are still so close and he checks on Ethan via Skype all the time.”
E-Nable currently has 4,000 community members, according to Melina, and has made approximately 700 hands with huge shipments of hands being sent to hospitals in Israel, Mexico and Ukraine — completely non-profit.
“It’s one big family, and it’s amazing to see people from different countries helping each other and working together for this cause,” Melina said. “The hands don’t turn kids into superheroes, but they do help immensely, and it’s amazing to see recipients beaming when they receive their hand. “
Ethan dons his high tech hand. He bends it at the wrist and is able to clasp anything he wants. He runs over to a dog statue to pose for a picture and is like any other fourth grader, just with a remarkable hand.
Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.
