INSPIRING STORIES

brimmer’s caring community

Inspiring stories about how our community jumped into action at the height of the pandemic Standing Up to Fight

Developing a Vaccine

Hilary Malone P ’22

I was previously the Chief Regulatory Officer for a European-based, global pharmaceutical company called Sanofi for the past six years; however, I left last December to pursue a new opportunity and I am now the COO of a biotech startup called Valo (valohealth. com) here in Boston. Like a number of global pharmaceutical companies, Sanofi has two COVID vaccines under very active development. Earlier in the pandemic, the company was also researching if some of their other drugs would work in alleviating COVID symptoms, one was a treatment for malaria and another for rheumatoid arthritis, but both proved to be ineffective.

At Valo, we briefly explored the possibility of using our platform to conduct clinical trials with two potential new COVID drugs, both targeting the breathing/lung complications of COVID. Due to the fact that Valo is a machine learning, artificial intelligence–based biotech, we spent time modeling/designing in silico (using computer models/approaches) a number of new potential COVID treatments and collaborating with other companies to potentially design new drugs to treat COVID. We decided not to pursue this work. However, one of our sister biotech companies, Moderna (based in Cambridge, MA), has a COVID vaccine in clinical trials and if effective and approved for use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (the U.S. drug and vaccine regulator) it might be available before the end of the year. Moderna’s vaccine is one of a number of vaccines currently in late-stage clinical trials and, given that it usually takes 5 to 10 years to develop a vaccine, the collaboration between the biotech/pharmaceutical industry, regulators, academics, hospitals, and doctors to find treatments for this pandemic has been amazing!

Standing Up to Fight

Tayler Stander ’14

“It’s an unprecedented time. It can be easy to become weighed down with anxiety or fear in the face of truly difficult events. A fact that should ease this fear is the truth that there are many amazing healthcare professionals and essential workers who have remained steadfast in the face of this virus. I am lucky to call these workers my colleagues. I have worked as an EMT at Armstrong Ambulance for over a year and a half. I still find myself facing new challenges every day...whether that be when I respond to a particularly complex call, or when we as a company learn how to adapt in the time of this pandemic. I am incredibly proud of this job, and I am proud of all of those who have stood up to fight.”

Working with Veterans

Samantha Cacciatore ’13

“I have been working at the Boston VA HealthCare system since August 2019—I was hired after interning throughout my master’s degree in education. I go into the hospital every day to provide veterans resources and care to ensure safety once they discharge from the hospital. I work predominately with geriatric veterans who are considered high risk for COVID-19. My team has provided me immense support during this challenging time, and we are working long hours in hopes of treating as many people as we can during this pandemic.”

Brimmer Students Take Initiative to Help the Community

Avery Alperin ’21, Henry Wong ’33

“When I heard of the shortages of PPE, I wanted to do something to honor and respect all the doctors that have taken care of me, particularly in the past six years. When it became likely that we may not return to school this past semester, I asked if our Science Dept. had supplies that could be donated. Amazingly, I was able to deliver 800 gloves to Newton Wellesley Hospital. Then I asked for anyone in our School community to get together virtually and make as many masks as possible. We were even able to offer some of the School’s sewing machines for anyone who needed one to be able to make the masks. Thanks to the efforts of many in our community, we are in the process of making masks to also be donated to those in need.”

Henry Wong ’33 donated 150 N95 masks to Brigham & Women’s Hospital on his 5th birthday.

Donating Masks to the Front Line

Mahlon (Marlo) Williams P ’20, ’23

Current parent Mahlon (Marlo) Williams P ’20, ’23 has taken his business I LOVE BOSTON SPORTS to the front line of first responders during this COVID-19 pandemic.

“This is a tough time for everyone, but the humanity being shown by people in the community has been incredible to see. We purchased 1,000 KN95 masks through a connection with our banner supplier in China, then realized we could offer a T-shirt sale in which proceeds would help us buy more masks to donate to area medical staff. To date, we have purchased 3,000 KN95 masks that have been donated to first responders and local medical facilities. In addition, my company I LOVE BOSTON SPORTS (ilovebostonsports.com) has donated 6,000 T-shirts for local mask makers who were running out of material. These masks are being donated by these incredible individuals to first responders and nursing homes.”

Providing Essential Care to Children with Developmental Disabilities

Rachel Pepe ’14

“I am a Behavioral Healthcare provider at the New England Center for Children in Southborough, MA. I provide essential residential treatment to children diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder along with other developmental disabilities. The care I provide is essential for the health and safety of these children. In times of change like this, especially when routine is such a crucial part of these children’s lives, it can be extremely scary to them, leading to an increase in challenging behavior in the forms of aggression, environmental destruction, and self-injury. I love my job and what I provide each day. Especially now, I am more blessed than ever to still have a job to continue to go to.”

Essential Work of a First Responder

Bem Claiborne P ’21, ’24

Being a first responder is just part of Bem Claiborne’s job. It’s what he signed up for. When everyone else is asked to shelter-in-place, he goes to work: in blizzards, in crises, in a pandemic. He walks the three miles because, sometimes, that’s what it takes. Following a potential exposure at work last month, Bem isolated himself from the rest of the family on a separate floor of the house, and because he wasn’t having symptoms himself, he continued to go to work as scheduled. Bem’s wife Victoria writes, “Our family, as well as many others, have been lucky enough not to have this infection in our homes. Bem’s parents were kind enough to buy the firehouse dinner from Blue Ribbon BBQ to thank them for their work. We’re all in this together, and we can contribute to the well-being of our communities by staying home and being safe.”

Lower School Hearts for Healthcare Workers

Brimmer Lower School

Our Lower Schoolers participated in the nationwide “Hearts for Healthcare Workers” initiative as part of their remote art curriculum. These beautiful hearts were displayed in their homes as a symbol of support for healthcare workers and essential workers and a token of love and care for friends and family. Students shared responses to the following questions during their weekly virtual Share assembly: Who is your heart going out to? How do hearts make people feel? Why is putting up hearts important? How does it spread joy?