[TRANSCRIPT]

Melissa Yingst Huber

It may seem surprising in this day and age, but handwriting competitions are still a thing. Even more shocking is the winner of the 2016 Zaner-Bloser National Handwriting Competition. First-grader Anaya Ellick, who is 7 years old, was presented with a check and trophy. She won the Nicholas Maxim Special Award for Excellence in Manuscript Penmanship. The category is for individuals in kindergarten through eighth grade who have a cognitive delay, or an intellectual, physical or developmental disability.

So what makes this win so special? Anaya doesn't have any hands. Her principal noted that she doesn’t use prosthetics, and gets her picture-perfect penmanship by using a special technique. Anaya puts her writing utensil between her arms and stands up at her desk so that she’s positioned at the proper angle for writing.

The competition was judged by occupational therapists. The first-grader was chosen over 50 others for the award. Her mother has stated the first-grader’s determination in writing reflects her attitude toward everything else in her life. “She ties her shoes, she gets dressed by herself, she doesn’t really need any assistance to do anything.”.

Such an inspiring young girl. Determination, passion, and hard work can go a long way. Congratulations Anaya.

Those are our top stories for today.

I’m Melissa Yingst Huber, thank you for watching and we’ll see you tomorrow.