Young Md. cancer patient hopes to teach kids to wear masks

Four-year-old Abby Cafiero demonstrates the proper way to wear a mask. (Courtesy Katie Renehan)

With the new academic year around the corner, a 4-year-old Maryland cancer patient is doing her part in asking students to wear masks.

As a cancer patient at the Herman & Walter Samuelson Children’s Hospital at Sinai in Baltimore, young Abby Cafiero is among the category of people most vulnerable to coronavirus infection.

That’s why Dr. Jennie Hart, one of her doctors, is hoping she can help get the word out that masks are important.

“They keep you safe so you don’t get any germs,” Cafiero said on masks, and that everyone should wear them “at stores and other places with people.”

Cafiero is included in a short slide show that shows kids how to put on a mask properly and showcases different kinds of masks, including those made of paper and cloth.

Hart said she is working with Baltimore County Public Schools to have the slides, part of a project titled “How to Wear a Mask,” included as part of the school system’s official mask-wearing tutorial for the new year.

“We were so excited when Dr. Hart reached out to us,” said Cafiero’s mother, Katie Renehan. “We dressed up in different scenarios to let kids know that it’s OK to wear masks.”

Abby's slides could soon be part of a Baltimore public schools tutorial on mask wearing for students. (Courtesy Katie Renehan)
Four-year-old Abby Cafiero demonstrates the proper way to wear a mask. (Courtesy Katie Renehan)
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Nick Iannelli

Nick Iannelli can be heard covering developing and breaking news stories on WTOP.

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