A teacher returned to teaching lessons via video link from her hospital bed only one day after they had brain surgery to remove a tumour.
Katherine Meucci had been a teacher at Benjamin Franklin Elementary School, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, for seven years before she had the terrifying diagnosis of having a brain tumour.
Despite it being “probably benign” she was told it was essential it was removed as swiftly as possible.
However, the 39-year-old was determined not to let it get in the way of her teaching duties.
Less than 24 hours after her operation, she was on Facebook Live, reading a bedtime story to her fourth-grade students from her hospital bed, as she always does.
Two years ago, she started reading bedtime stories to her students every Thursday night as a way to connect with them as a “real person”.
Talking to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, she said: “My concern was just that my students were worried, and they needed to see that I’m still me and I’m OK.”
Katherine had become aware of the tumour after a bout of Covid-19 that exacerbated episodes of lightheadedness and faintness that she’d felt for a couple months.
After a visit to the hospital, scans revealed a squash ball-sized brain tumour.
Fearing the worse, she wrote “Mommy loves you” in her child’s journal and made her sister promise to hold her 4-year-old daughter’s hand if she gets married someday.
However, only a day later she was back doing her job.
In the video, Katherine said: “I’m sorry if I look a little weird.
"I got this black eye going on right here because they cut open my head right here to take out my brain tumour.
“You are my friends and you are an important part of our school community.
"You are an important part of our world and you are so loved.
"I look a little funky, but I wanted you to see and know that I’m OK.”
Doctors believe they were able to remove the entire tumour on October 13, and she has since continued her recovery.
Since beginning teaching 17-years-ago, the previous teacher of the year finalist’s motto has been “strong and brave” and she wanted to show her students she was sticking to it.
It was not just her students, watching her read bedtime stories the day after her operation, her surgeon, Dr Matthew Shepard, watched too, talking to the Post-Gazette he said: “To really see the direct impact that you get to make on someone’s life is really meaningful.
“I actually choked up a little when she was able to tell her students, ‘I will be back.’ That meant the world to me.”
“I’ll make it back to my corner, too,” she said on Facebook Live, referencing the story’s main character, just before signing off.
She added: “Good night, I love you, and I’ll see you soon, friends.”
