McGlynn Student Helps Raise Diabetes Awareness

MEDFORD, MA – A fifth-grade student at McGlynn Elementary School is helping raise diabetes awareness through a fundraiser for Boston Children's Hospital.

The idea stemmed from a conversation between Emily Da'Silva and Megan Richard, a physical education teacher at McGlynn. Emily noted that the McGlynn community rallied behind Pink Day for breast cancer awareness and asked if the same type of event could be done for diabetes.

Emily, who was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes when she was 3 years old, wanted to host a Blue Day to raise money and awareness for the condition. She and Richard held Blue Day at the school on Nov. 14, World Diabetes Day.

To date, McGlynn School has raised $300, which will be donated to Boston Children's Hospital's Diabetes Clinical, Training and Education Fund. Emily and another student, as well as a former McGlynn student now at the middle school, receive treatment at Boston Children's Hospital.

The school will accept donations throughout November, which is National Diabetes Month.

"I'm so proud of how my students who have diabetes handle this disease. I've watched my brother handle his diabetes since he was 17 years old, and to see these young kids do the same thing is hard yet encouraging," Richard said in a statement. "They don't let this disease get in their way of anything."

Photo: Emily and Megan Richard on one of their walks during recess.

Image submitted by Medford Public Schools