Limbitless Solutions president and co-founder Albert Manero ’12 ’14MS ’16PhD was recently honored by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and First Lady Casey DeSantis during the first annual Florida Heroes reception.
The event welcomed heroes from across Florida to the Governor’s Mansion in Tallahassee to honor them for exhibiting courage, perseverance, and self-sacrifice.
This included police officers, first responders, and veterans who had risked health and safety to serve and protect their communities and country, as well as members of the community who have dedicated themselves to helping others overcome adversity through nonprofit efforts, adoption and foster care, careers in education, and advocacy.
Founded in 2014, Limbitless Solutions is a nonprofit and direct support organization at UCF dedicated to increasing accessibility and empowering children and adults in the limb difference community.
“We were honored to be recognized at the event and to represent our program and the university,” Manero says. “We were surrounded by an incredible group of heroes, and it was an honor to hear how they are making our communities stronger.”
The stories of all heroes in attendance were displayed throughout the Governor’s Mansion as a tribute to their civic service and self-sacrifice. Manero was recognized for the work Limbitless Solutions does to deliver 3D-printed bionic arms to children around the U.S. at no cost to their families. Most recently, Limbitless Solutions announced it’s launching a new clinical trial in partnership with Orlando Health Arnold Palmer Children’s Hospital to provide more bionic arms for children locally and nationally.
Manero received his doctoral degree in mechanical engineering and his master’s and bachelor’s degrees in aerospace engineering from UCF. He also holds courtesy research appointments in UCF’s mechanical and aerospace engineering department and Mayo Clinic’s neurology department and is a member of UCF’s Biionix faculty cluster initiative.
Manero attended the event with Limbitless Solutions co-founder John Sparkman ’13 ’15MS, vice president and head of research and development of technology.
Sparkman received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical engineering from UCF. In his role at Limbitless Solutions, Sparkman leads the electrical and mechanical designs for the prostheses pre-production, in addition to research and development.
To learn more about Limbitless Solutions, visit limbitless-solutions.org.
