An experiment made with a 3D printer became an unforgettable gift for a St. Louis family. Now it’s become a full circle moment for a business owner and 3-year-old Lyla Whitley, and it all started on social media.

“She doesn’t have to sit in a chair. She can still move. She still goes to the park she still plays. She’s still getting to be a fun cute 3-year-old little girl,” Lyla’s mother Shay Whitley said.

Lyla has a rare genetic bone disease called X-Linked Hypophosphatemia, XLH for short.

The surgeries can be physically and mentally exhausting for kids and families by their side.

A 3D printed mobility chair made by Kim Knitting helped Lyla immediately.

“Wheelchairs take years sometimes to get approved for insurance. We got it in time for her to have her surgery down at Vanderbilt, and she was able to wheel herself out of surgery,” Whitley said.

“Insurance wise, we would have paid $10,000 probably for a wheelchair. We paid absolutely nothing for this,” she said.

Kim Knittig made the chair and connected with Whitley on social media.

Knittig originally bought a 3D printer to make toys and trinkets for her grandkids as a hobby.

Then she decided to try something new, pairing with the 3D print company “Make Good” to print mobility chairs.

She was happy to make a custom-colored mobility chair.

“She uses it every day and she really enjoys it from what I understand,” said Knittig with Roden Landscaping.

“I’m on chair number fourteen. I have a fifteenth in the works, and it’s all donations. There’s no cost to the family at all, and we just go from there,” she said.

There is a cost for the materials though and wanted to help.

“He was like, “Hey, you know,  I’ll fund it. You build them.’ And I said, ‘Deal.’ So it’s just gone from there,” Knittig said.

The owner of Roden Landscaping, Steve Roden said seeing how happy Lyla is makes the donation even more meaningful.

After the pics and videos were posted online, an unexpected old friend called him. Lyla’s Grandfather.

“That really hit me really hit home and made me feel really really good about it,” Roden said.

“Kim was able to help Jaime’s granddaughter after her surgery, and everything. A nice warm fuzzy feeling is what you got out of that baby,”

Whitley says the act of kindness is something her family will never forget.

“Thanks for giving her mobility and just letting her be her and her sassy self that [laughs] this little girl that just tires out you know she gets to be a little girl when those times come that she’s tired,” she said.

If you would like more information on how to get a free mobility chair, visit 3D-mobility.org.