Girl born without hands wins national handwriting contest

CHESAPEAKE, VA (WTXF) - A seven-year-old girl accomplished what many would consider impossible.

Anaya Ellick won first place in a national handwriting contest even though she was born without hands.

The girl - from Chesapeake, Virginia - doesn't even use prosthetics.

We want to say how proud we are of Anaya Ellick, a first-grade student at Greenbrier Christian Academy (GCA) in Chesapeake, Virginia, who earned the Nicholas Maxim Special Award for Excellence in Manuscript Penmanship. Our team was honored to award Anaya her large trophy and a check for $1,000. Her determination and spirit is an inspiration to us all. Photo courtesy of Greenbrier Christian Academy.

How does Anaya write so well, despite her disability? She holds her pencil in between her arms and stands at a desk.

It definitely does the trick.

Anaya got a trophy and a check for $1,000 from the handwriting contest's sponsor, education and literacy organization Zaner-Bloser.