For Jessica Bergau, the organization began with a BuzzFeed article.
The article, which discussed the 3-D printing of prosthetics, inspired the 21-year-old UF zoology junior to start Generational Relief in Prosthetics, or GRiP, a student organization that now uses 3-D printing to build prosthetic hands.
Now about five months old, the organization just received a $500 donation from Michael George Insurance, a subsidiary of the Allstate Corporation, to continue its work.
“We were looking for donations because we needed to buy materials for making prosthetics,” said Samantha Haus, the vice president of GRiP and a UF biomedical engineering junior.
Michael George Insurance could not be reached for comment.
Haus, 20, estimates that each hand, built from about 30 plastic parts, costs $30 to produce. Most of the cost comes from materials and additional tools.
“There are a bunch of little pieces of plastic we clean off and refine,” Haus said. “There is also a lot of tweaking to make sure it works.”
The donation is the latest in a series of aid from the Gainesville community, including another $500 donation from Acousti Engineering Company of Florida, the group behind the interior construction of the Reitz Union. The Home Depot and Lowe’s have also donated tools.
The students also created a GoFundMe page a month ago that has raised more than half of the organization’s $2,000 goal.
“It’s great because we know right where the money is going to,” Bergau said. “It’s going right to the devices.”
As of now, the students have mostly made prosthetic hands for children. Club members have visited Hands for Love, a camp for children with missing limbs, not only to educate the children about the 3-D printing process, but also to give them prosthetic hands.
“I can’t think of a better way for this donation,” Bergau said.
Contact Meryl Kornfield at mkornfield@alligator.org and follow her on Twitter @merylkornfield.
Sam Monarch (left), a 17-year-old Hands for Love attendee, has his prosthetic adjusted by Jessica Bergau, a 21-year-old UF zoology junior and president of General Relief in Prosthetics (GRiP).
