Today our family walked to cure diabetes! We got up bright and early and drove for an hour to our destination. (I had to yank and coax and threaten a few kids to get out of bed.) But once we got there, we were so glad we made the effort. Now that I have two sons with juvenile diabetes, I knew our family needed to take a stronger stand in joining the cause to cure it. We made a donation, and others offered their support. This is a disease which takes a terrible toll on a child’s health and well-being. And it’s life-altering.
We had a great time! When we first arrived, we picked up our t-shirts (“Mooom, I need a smaller one.” “Hey, mine’s too tight. Can I trade him?”) Then we headed down the walk. We pushed our littlest one, Kathryn, in her stroller and walked a designed path around the park and through the surrounding neighborhood. There were plenty of drinks, low-carb yogurt smoothies, doughnuts, juices, and diet sodas. There was also lively music, and plenty of friendly faces. Family and businesses wore matching “team” t-shirts in support of particular children with diabetes. There were some creative team names, like “Anika’s Skywalkers.” (I’m sure little Anika had a devoted team!)
We brought a few headphones and ipods, but interestingly enough, nobody used them. It was so enjoyable to go out on a family walk for a good cause! Instead of listening to music, we talked. The kids had a lot of questions. “How is walking going to cure it?” “Why don’t they just give everybody a new pancreas?” “Do you think they’ll cure it in my lifetime?” Some of the questions I could answer, and others not. But the important thing was that we were talking about this disease and trying to understand it. And that’s what walking for the cure is essentially trying to do… finance new research strategies to bring us closer to the answers we need.
The kids got their hair painted purple, won prizes, ate chicken and hot dogs, and jumped in blow-up bouncing pads. And at the end of the day, we felt like we made a difference.
“Walk to Cure Diabetes” is a program sponsored by the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Find a walk event happening near you and get involved!
Kristyn Crow is the author of this blog. Visit her website by clicking here. Some links on this blog may have been generated by outside sources are not necessarily endorsed by Kristyn Crow.