LYNN — Twelve-year-old Bianslee Otero shrugged off the tumor behind her eye, saying she just had to take vitamins now and had to spend a lot of time at doctor’s offices.
But the tumor had more impact on the life of her family, which a group of local police officers hope their $5,000 donation to the Oteros will ease.
“Everybody goes for the cure,” Robert Faherty, chairman of the board for Cops for Kids with Cancer and a retired superintendent-in-chief of the Boston Police, said Tuesday. “We do this because we love to help the families.”
Faherty, retired Boston Police Detective John McManus, Lynn Police Chief Kevin Coppinger, and Lynn Police officers Ralph Sirois, Craig Fountain and Mike Gorman presented the Otero family with a $5,000 check Tuesday on behalf of Cops for Kids with Cancer.
Faherty said the organization of “retired and active police officers and their friends” has donated more than $1 million to 200 families affected by cancer since it was started in 2002.
Bianslee Otero has optic pathway glioma, which causes a brain tumor that is behind her eye. She said she has so far avoided radiation or chemotherapy and/or surgery, but the tumor is inoperable and monitored carefully.
The recipients can use the money for anything — it is not limited to medical expenses or dedicated to research — recognizing that cancer affects not only patients, but also patients’ families.
Bianslee’s mother, Evelyn Otero, for instance, said she had to quit her job to care for her daughter. Losing that income has forced the family to try and sell their home.
“This helps us immensely, Evelyn Otero said. “It will help to pay the mortgage.”
Meanwhile, Bianslee Otero expressed concern with more typical kid matters. The KIPP Academy student said the school’s long hours and assignments are tough and she is looking forward to summer vacation. The Make-a-Wish Foundation has provided tickets to some theme parks that she is looking forward to visiting.
And when she grows older, Faherty, McManus and Coppinger joked that the pin of a Lynn Police badge and a Lynn Police blanket also given to the family should be kept in her car to avoid traffic tickets.
Cyrus Moulton can be reached at [email protected].
