Thirteen-year-old Isaac Stanley had a wish that was set to benefit him, but also give back to others.
The teen has been battling primary mediastinal B-cell lymphoma since diagnosed last year.
He was given a 3D printer by Make A Wish New Zealand.
It was delivered by Make A Wish New Zealand representatives Julie Luxton and Jo Hyde of Ashburton.
Isaac then set about mastering 3D printing and setting up his business; Print It Forward.
Part of Isaac’s print it forward plan is to give back to the charities and organisations that helped him and his family during his cancer journey.
‘‘I want to donate and help in anyway I can,” Isaac said.
“With the money he raises he would like to give something back once a month to Make a Wish, Child Cancer, Canteen and Blood cancer,” his mum Kelly said.
Knowing only too well what it is like to be in hospital and feel scared, Isaac said he wants to design hygenic little toys or gems for young children to hold on to when having treatments.
‘‘I can just close my eyes and get through it, but they can’t,‘‘ he said.
‘‘I understand why this is happening to me but they don’t.’’
Isaac knows the sky is the limit with this printer and in the future it will include his own designs.
Isaac had a couple of false starts into 3D printing.
Kelly said his first printer, he ordered off the internet, but when it arrived it didn’t work.
She them got him an entry level 3D printer for his birthday.
‘‘He enjoyed mucking around with it, but you couldn’t really make anything decent with it,” she said.
When the offer from Make A Wish arrived, Kelly said deciding what to wish for was a hard decision for Isaac.
“When you’re 13 and someone says to you can wish for anything it’s hard to choose.”
‘‘He didn’t want to do a holiday, he didn’t want to meet anyone, he wanted something he could have and that didn’t put him the centre of attention.”
Isaac knew couldn’t be outside running around with his friends and needed something he could just tinker away with.
After conversations going around and around for a while, Kelly finally said what about a 3D printer?
Isaac agreed and said if he got the printer it was something he could use it to give back to other people.
‘‘I wonder if it could be a multi-coloured one?” he asked.
Wish made, Kelly said the Make a Wish NZ people were so incredible.
‘‘They just took the idea and ran with it really.”
