A schoolboy born without a hand can finally ride his bike after Mirror readers helped fund a £13,000 campaign to buy him an Iron Man bionic arm.
Jacob Hyatt, seven, was born with his left hand and while it didn’t hold him back, he had a go with a high-tech prosthetic last year - and fell in love.
But the custom made limb cost £13,000 and his mum Bernice Hyatt, 33, shared a fundraising page in the hope kind donors could make her son’s dream come true.
The page was shared by the Daily Mirror, and the family were instantly bombarded with donations.
Jacob, from Eaton Bray, Bedfordshire, was finally able to pick up his superhero themed arm from Open Bionics last month and Bernice told how he is “over the moon”.
He got a new bike for Christmas and can finally go out cycling with his friends without wobbling or worrying about falling off anymore.
Florist Bernice said: “He keeps asking me to put on music so he can clap along - and he wants to high five or fist-bump everyone he meets.
“I have always taught Jacob it’s good to be different - you don’t have to fit in.
“But despite that, there are things he has always struggled with, so the second he tried on the bionic arm, he was desperate to get one.
“Leading up to the day he got the arm, every day he would ask ‘Mummy, why is it taking so long?’
“When we got the call to collect the arm, he was jumping around with excitement saying “I’m going to be Iron Man!’
“Since he got the arm, he’s worn it every day and wanted to show it off to anyone he meets.
“He keeps asking me to put on music so he can clap along - and he wants to high five or fist-bump everyone he meets.
“Every day he realises there are more and more things he can do now -
especially now he can finally ride a bike!”
Bernice, also mum to nine-month-old Blake, first learned her eldest son Jacob’s hand was missing at her 20-week pregnancy scan.
His arm had just randomly stopped developing early in the pregnancy.
Bernice vowed to ensure Jacob grew up feeling confident, strong and unique and found ways around things to make Jacob as independent as possible -
like buying clothes with zips instead of buttons.
But Bernice said as he grew up, she found her son becoming more aware of things he struggled to do - after first asking why he only had one hand when he was just four years old.
So when she spotted a post on Facebook last year, she put Jacob’s name forward and he was invited to attend a trial - and came away desperate for one of his own.
At just seven years old, he would be one of the youngest recipients of Open Bionics’ new bionic ‘hero arm’.
Bernice said: “I nearly cried when he began picking up and dropping tennis balls and doing the ‘OK’ hand sign - his eyes completely lit up.
“He got the hang of it straight away.
“I remember him saying ‘mum, look what I can do!’ and I knew we had to get one for him.”
Jacob could ride a bike without a prosthetic, but would be very wobbly because he couldn’t grip the handlebar properly.
Bernice said the little lad wouldn’t stop talking about how one day he could ride a bike confidently like his friends – to prove that he won’t let his disability hold him back.
But after learning the bionic arm cost a whopping £13,000, Jacob’s family launched a fundraiser in the hope that kind friends, family and strangers could help to make his superhero dreams come true.
And in just a few weeks, they hit their goal - and the countdown was on until Jacob would receive his tailor-made Iron Man arm.
He went to collect it with Bernice on February 24 - and he loves it so much, he has worn it every single day since.
Bernice, who lives with partner Jamie Buchanan, 44, and his two children,
said: “There was a lot of buzz leading up to that day - Jacob was constantly asking ‘Mummy, why is it taking so long?’
“He couldn’t stop talking about it.
“When we first picked it up, he was over the moon and he’s been desperate to show his superhero arm to everyone he can.”
Bernice said Jacob has been high-fiving and fist-bumping everyone he sees.
After getting a new bicycle for Christmas ready to get the arm, he has been proudly cycling and can now grip the handlebars easily.
Although it’s been a challenge for him to get used to using the arm, he has adapted quickly and easily.
Bernice said: “Although it was all he had ever known, he could get a bit frustrated at times because there were things he couldn’t do the same way as other children.
“Simple things like opening the car door, and opening a packet of crisps - he does it all by himself now.
“Every day there’s something new he learns how to do, and gets excited shouting ‘Mummy I can do it!’.
“I’ve raised him to feel strong and confident in himself, but this has done wonders for his self esteem.”
After mastering cycling, the little superhero has his sights set high.
His latest goal is now to become a secret spy when he grows up, like James Bond.
Bernice said: “He still does things in his own way, but he doesn’t get frustrated now.
“It still takes a lot of effort for him to do some things, but he’s able to do so much more.
“It’s amazing to watch him using it - I know I’m his mum so I’m supposed to say this, but he just looks so cool!
“Now he’s got his hero arm, he doesn’t feel held back at all.
“Now he really feels like the world is his oyster!”
