Back in October 2021, K.D. Meucci wound up in the hospital after getting COVID-19. To make matters worse, a brain scan happened to discover she had a brain tumor.
Within that very same week, the beloved fourth-grade teacher found herself preparing for surgery instead of class. Even so, K.D. couldn’t stop thinking about her kids.
Years ago, she created a private Facebook page called Franklin Bedtime Stories for the families at Benjamin Franklin Elementary School. There, teachers are able to go live for their students and read to them anytime they want. But for K.D., she makes sure to give her students a bedtime story every single Thursday night.
Even the Thursday after her surgery!
“Packing for the hospital was scary, probably the scariest moment of my life, thinking I was not going to come out of it,” K.D. said. “Packing that book, it gave me hope that I would be able to read to my students.”
And so, just one day after she had brain surgery, K.D. had some very exciting news to give her students. Not only was her tumor benign, but the doctors were also able to remove it all!
She may have looked a little rough with her swollen face and the bandage around her head, but K.D. couldn’t have been happier to be there virtually reading Lisa Graff’s “Mr. Walker Steps Out” to her kids.
As important as it was for K.D. that she not miss her Thursday bedtime story, she also wanted to make sure her students knew she was going to be just fine.
“Most importantly, I wanted to see you, to see that I’m OK. I look a little funky, but I wanted you to see it and know that I’m OK,” she told her students. “I want you to know that I love you and I miss you, and I know you’re going to have a great day tomorrow, strong and brave, and I’m proud of you, Ben Franklin, so you have a good night. I love you, miss and I’ll see you soon friends.”
Fast forward to 2022 and K.D. is doing better than ever! She is finally back at school where she belongs, the best way for her to start off the new year! But she wasn’t alone in her excitement — her students felt the exact same way, making posters to show her just how thrilled they were to have her back.
“We love you, Mrs. Meucci!” they cried out.
K.D.’s personal motto is about being “strong and brave,” something she makes sure her students know. She does this through words, of course, but it’s clear that she leads by example as well.
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