MASK Matters Moms Making A Difference

MASK Matters Moms Making A Difference

MASK (Mothers Awareness on School-age Kids) is a nonprofit 501 (c) (3) organization created in 2007 by a group of dedicated mothers who recognized the need to consistently educate families on rapidly changing issues. The MASK mission is to engage and educate parents, children and the community on issues facing youth and to empower children to make safe, healthy choices.

MASK fulfills its mission by engaging, educating and empowering families through the MASK E3 Institute, MASK The Magazine and an informative website. The MASK E3 Institute is a comprehensive year long multi-year prevention program that teaches kindergarten through college-age students invaluable life skills and provides tools on how to cope with a number of issues including responding to peer pressure, technology-related challenges, refusal skills, self-esteem and boundaries.

MASK The Magazine is a parenting manual offering solutions to the modern-day challenges families face. It is packed with advice and will prepare and equip parents and students with knowledge, resources and skills to help strengthen parent-child bonds. MASK aims to build healthy children, strengthen parent-child bonds and improve school climate.

Michelle Cardini is Co-Founder and Marketing Manager at MASK (Mothers Awareness on School-age Kids). MASK began in 2007 when Michelle and Founder Kimberly Cabral were talking about their children and the concern they had for their safety and well-being. The conversation sparked a desire to learn more about the challenges and problems kids face and share that knowledge with other parents. Today, MASK is a thriving non-profit organization that distributes important information to families, schools, and communities to engage, educate and empower children to make safe, healthy choices.

Through the MASK E3 Institute, MASK The Magazine, and maskmatters.org, this information is accessible to families all over the world. Since MASK’s inception, Michelle has been involved in the development of student and parent programs, MASK The Magazine and fundraising events. She takes pride in encouraging parents to have a healthy, open dialog with their children while offering parenting solutions for today’s families. Over the past ten years Michelle has presented MASK Parent University to audiences throughout the valley and is a frequent media guest on local news stations. Michelle has been married to her high school sweetheart Joe Cardini for 26 years, and loves nothing more than being the mother of her three children Amanda, Joseph and Cristina.

Joining Michelle Cardini for this segment are two past recipients of the “Moms Making A Difference” Award: Lauren Daniels, Founder of the Happily Ever After League and Michelle Moore-Fanger, Founder of Mother’s Grace.

Connect with Michelle on LinkedIn, or by email, and follow MASK on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Lauren Daniels created the Happily Ever After League (HEAL) just six months into her own cancer journey. HEAL supports moms recovering from cancer in the time of their most immediate need. A mom in active cancer treatment with at least one dependent child at home receives a one time grant to help with the very expensive price tag that cancer comes with.

The grant money can be used to help pay for medical co-payments, medications and diagnostic testing. Ongoing support is offered through Healing House programs with a monthly Food Pantry, Outreach for holiday gifts and back to school supplies and backpacks as well as social support and educational events that assist families and enhance the quality of life for them as they deal with the challenges of cancer.

Connect with Lauren on LinkedIn, and follow Happily Ever After on Facebook.

Michelle Moore-Fanger is Founder of Mother’s Grace, a foundation that is dedicated to the support of mothers and children who have endured life tragedies. By providing financial support and guidance, Mother’s Grace empowers these women to reach their goals of making a difference in their communities by helping others inflicted with similar circumstances.