Chesterfield Township school is the state's first in e-NABLE program, in which students design prosthetics for people in need
GRAND HAVEN — Like most kids, third-grader Kaysen Green was looking forward to what he might find under the Christmas tree. Then, two weeks before Christmas, he received an early gift that changed his life.
On Dec. 12, students from Austin Catholic High School in Chesterfield Township traveled to Kaysen’s school in Grand Haven and presented him with a special box. He opened the lid to find a 3D-printed, custom-made prosthetic arm. Due to a congenital birth defect, Kaysen was born without his left arm below his elbow.
The Austin Catholic students and Kaysen were brought together through e-NABLE, a program with certified chapters around the world that create low-cost, 3D-printed prosthetic upper limb devices for those in need.
Laura Hayden, the STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics) coordinator and a teacher at Austin Catholic High School, learned about e-NABLE at a workshop during a teachers’ conference through the University of Notre Dame's Center for STEM Education.
She was eager to share the information with her senior STEAM capstone class that fall.
“E-NABLE is a good fit for us in that it’s a project our capstone students can do that helps others,” Hayden said. “The term we use here is ‘innovative discipleship,’ meaning we want to use our talents in STEAM to be a force for good.”
In order to become a certified e-NABLE chapter, Hayden’s class learned the process of 3D printing, thermoforming, building and stringing fully functioning prosthetic limbs through a series of badges. They submitted videos along the way demonstrating their functioning prosthetics for approval.
The Class of 2022 successfully completed the certification and put Austin Catholic on the e-NABLE website’s map as a location that could provide 3D-printed prosthetics, the only one in Michigan.
Three years later, in the fall of last year, Hayden was contacted by e-NABLE with a request for a prosthetic arm for Kaysen. It was their first request, and the class got to work immediately to complete the arm in time for Christmas.
Four freshmen from Hayden’s Introduction to STEAM class assisted in identifying suitable limb models on the e-NABLE website based on Kaysen's arm. They chose a model that was created in 2024.
Hayden says the email was according to God’s timing: if they had gotten the request for Kaysen when they first became a chapter in 2022, they wouldn’t have had a model to fit Kaysen.
“I think the most challenging part was forming it without meeting him in person first,” senior Jacob Boutorwick said. “We had his measurements, but we didn’t know how exact they were. It turns out, it fits his arm really well.”
The students ran into other challenges as well. Their 3D printer wasn’t big enough for one of the parts. The school’s bowling coach, Chuck Duvall, reached out to his friend, Joseph Simko, who had a larger home printer and was willing to help.
The capstone team sent Simko the CAD (Computer-Aided Design) file with the measurements, which he used to print the piece, leaving it on his front porch for the students to pick up.
After several trial runs, Kaysen’s prosthetic was finished in early December. The capstone seniors begged Hayden to go with her to deliver it to Kaysen.
On Dec. 12, the six seniors, a freshman from the Intro to STEAM class, and Hayden left Austin Catholic at 7:30 a.m. for Kaysen’s school in Grand Haven. Kristin Blain of the Ottawa Area Intermediary School District, who found Austin Catholic on the e-NABLE website, met them to facilitate the presentation of the special gift.
The group waited in a classroom for Kaysen to arrive. When he opened the box, they fitted him with the prosthetic and showed him how to use it. Within a few minutes, he was bouncing a tennis ball, something he hadn’t been able to do before.
“It was heartwarming to see the impact you can make through simple plastic and the practical things we can do with it,” said senior Ausin Ormsby.
Being there to witness Kaysen as he used his left arm for the first time was special for everyone, especially his mother, Amber Pedicone.
“Watching Kaysen use his arm for the first time was an emotional moment I will never forget,” Pedicone said. “As his mom, seeing the joy and confidence on his face was truly overwhelming and something I will always carry with me.”
A fully robotic arm costs $10,000, making it impossible for most families to consider the option until their children are older and have finished growing, Hayden explained to Detroit Catholic.
Thanks to sponsors of the Austin Catholic STEAM capstone class — UAW Local 412, Bostick Truck Center, and Gordie’s Auto & Tire — the 3D-printed arm was provided to Kaysen at no cost. As he grows, the Austin Catholic class and future classes will make new prosthetics for him, even printing more than one at a time in his favorite colors.
“One of our mantras at Austin Catholic is, ‘Minds to lead. Hands to serve. Hearts to love.’ And you could truly feel the love from everybody there. Kaysen’s mom went around and hugged each one of us,” Hayden said. “My Christmas present was being in that room and seeing Kaysen use that arm for the first time. The joy was immense.”
Senior Abigail Glynn wouldn’t have missed being there for anything.
“It hit me that, nine years ago, when Kaysen was born, I was only in third grade, and that was a challenge his family faced,” Glynn said. “They had no idea back then he would bring us all together like this. Making the arm for him and then watching him be able to catch a ball for the first time — that was a special moment I’ll never forget.”
Kaysen’s classmates were almost as enthusiastic about the new prosthetic as Kaysen himself.
“Kaysen came in first, and then his classmates came in and they were so excited,” Boutorwick said. “It was great to see their joy for him. They all fist-pumped him with his new arm.”
Kaysen’s life was changed forever that day, and so were the lives of the Austin Catholic students.
Boutorwick plans to attend Northern Michigan University in the fall for construction management, but after this experience, he is considering starting an e-NABLE chapter while in college. Glynn and Ormsby, who both plan to study aerospace engineering, would also like to work on future e-NABLE projects to help children gain mobility and freedom.
“Since the day the Austin Catholic High School delivered his prosthetic, Kaysen has gained a new sense of independence and confidence,” Pedicone said. “Their kindness changed more than just his daily life, it changed how he sees himself, and that has meant everything to our family.”
To learn more about e-NABLE or to sponsor the Austin Catholic STEAM capstone class for future projects, contact Laura Hayden at [email protected].
