Maranatha Students Use 3D Printing to Share Hope Across the Globe

A student-led service project born at Maranatha High School has grown beyond its campus and community—offering compassion, encouragement, and creativity to children abroad.

The initiative began through the Print-A-Smile Club, co-founded by student leaders Talia Zarifian ’27 and Armen Tatevossian ’27, who envisioned using 3D printing to design toys and messages of hope for underserved children during the Christmas season. Inspired by the campaign, senior Joanna Li extended the mission independently during a personally arranged visit to Kenya, delivering handmade gifts to children connected to grassroots community organizations.

Each gift package included a 3D-printed articulated toy, a Scripture tag engraved in both English and Swahili, and a student-selected Bible verse printed on a card. Students from the TILE Lab—Maranatha’s Technology Innovation for Leadership and Entrepreneurship program—designed, printed, and prepared the items with care.

“This reminded us that the impact of love doesn’t stop at borders,” said Li. “Every verse, every tag was a reminder to a child that they are seen and valued.”

The effort was supported by students including Spencer Wang ’26, George Kefalas ’26, Harout Mitilian ’26, Simon Almasi ’27, Nikolas Mehrabian ’27, and others, who helped prepare over 200 child-safe toys and personalized packaging. Local distribution was also coordinated through Calvary Church Pacific Palisades and Frontier Church Pasadena, ensuring the heart of the outreach was extended both locally and globally.

Reflecting on the broader impact, Zarifian shared:

“It started as a simple idea to serve locally—but watching it grow has been a beautiful reminder that even small acts of service can ripple far beyond what we imagine.”

This summer, Maranatha will continue advancing its mission of service-driven innovation by hosting the Inspirit AI Summer Enrichment Program, taught by instructors from Stanford, MIT, and other top institutions, helping students apply emerging technologies with purpose.

Maranatha High School, 169 S. St. John Avenue, Pasadena, (626) 817-4000 or visit www.maranathahighschool.org.