Nora has finally finished writing all her answers for the Children's Congress application. Geez!! That was a crazy, long application process. Now it will be my turn to condense her paragraphs into no more than three pages or 1200 words. UGH!! But, I'm glad she has gone through this process...she's learned a lot, as have I. about the Special Diabetes Act and diabetes and my daughter. If you've missed the previous two posts you can find them here and here.
I'm going to combine this post with questions 3-5.
Question 3: What does the Special Diabetes Program mean to you?
The Special Diabetes Program is important to me because a cure could take longer to find. If there was no SDP then a lot of the technology wouldn't advance and help us diabetes live a better life. Without the SDP there would be no TrialNet. TrialNet is VERY important because it helped my sister get diagnosed earlier. If she hadn't been diagnosed earlier then she would've been really sick. The SDP is hope for a better future, earlier diagnosis, understanding complications, help, hope and a cure. This is what the Special Diabetes Program means to me.
Question 4: Why should the US Congress support diabetes research to help find a cure for T1D?
The US Congress should help support diabetes research because it would help diabetics have a normal life. Without the government help, these programs would not exist or they would have to spend more time fundraising instead of researching, preventing, advancing technology and finding a cure. The US Congress needs to help my sister, myself and the other 26 million diabetics have a better life!
Question 5: What have you done to promote awareness of T1D in your community?
I have raised awareness for T1D in my community being featured as 1 of 3 diabetics in a JDRF video, Why We Joined the JDRF Advocacy Family. I have attended Promise to Remember Me Campaigns for JDRF with my local Congressmen. I celebrate, with my family, community and other T1D's, World Diabetes Day events in Downtown Cincinnati, that our local JDRF chapter hosts. I have been interviewed by local newspapers and morning news shows about T1D. I also blog about my life with diabetes at http://lovingnora.blogspot.com/. I love doing all these things because I get to meet other people just like me! I also like to mentor newly diagnosed kids. I have met a lot of new friends by spreading T1D awareness. I'm happy I know I'm not alone!
