Two Milford High School engineering students designed and built a prosthetic, pictured, for a 12-year-old hockey player born without fingers on his left hand.

By Megan Alley

Sun staff

A 12-year-old hockey player born without fingers on his left hand has been gifted a prosthetic that was designed and built by two Milford High School engineering students.Connor Hart, an 11th-grader, and Emme Thomas, a ninth-grader, custom designed and engineered the prosthetic, which they named “The Grip Hand,” for Gabe Vogelgesang. They used a 3D printer to manufacture the apparatus.

Two Milford High School engineering students designed and built a prosthetic, pictured, for a 12-year-old hockey player born without fingers on his left hand.

The students, who have been working on the prosthetic since the start of the school year, met with Vogelgesang for a fitting of the third and latest version on March 17.“It’s great because they helped me with everything,” Vogelgesang said.

Vogelgesang, who lives in Harrison and attends St. John The Baptist School, has been playing hockey for six years.

When he was younger, be played by pinching the end of the hockey stick against his body. But that method doesn’t work now that he’s older and playing harder.

“It was harder because I had difficulties holding onto the stick and getting enough power, but I think the [prosthetic] is going to help me do everything better, like shooting, getting more power and more control,” Vogelgesang said.

Hart and Thomas are studying engineering at the high school through a program called Project Lead the Way, which is part of Great Oaks Career Campuses. The high school’s program is available to ninth- to 12th-graders and focuses on engineering, computer integrated manufacturing, computer science principles, engineering design and more.

“Milford provides the students and the classroom; the curriculum, equipment, instructor and materials are provided by Great Oaks Career Campuses,” according to an information sheet for the program.

Milford High School’s PLtW program is one of more than 70 satellite programs at two dozen area schools that offer students focused studies in business, health, engineering, biomedical science and marketing.

The students developed the prosthetic as part of the high school’s Hands of HOPE program.

“We are a group of students who use our engineering skills to assist others,” according to a program flyer. “We specialize in 3D printed prosthetics, but we are willing to attempt any challenge or request.”

The program is named after the group’s first client Hope, a young girl for whom they developed a prosthetic arm.

Thomas described what it was like to make a prosthetic to help someone.

“It’s really good. It’s kind of humbling to be helping them, and they’re doing so much by themselves, like with the hockey stick, and telling us what to do and we’re just kind of designing it,” she said.

Vogelgesang looks forward to using the prosthetic grip when the official season for hockey starts next fall. Until then, he’ll be practicing and getting used to the apparatus.

He described what it was like to be part of the development process for The Grip Hand.

“I was kind of like the test-dummy a little bit,” he said, adding that the whole experience got him interested in design and engineering.

Hands of Hope does not charge clients for its services. To make a donation to the group, contact Peter Leeper, program advisor, at leeper_p@milfordschools.org.