Dearest Friends and Family,

JDRF walk is March 20, 2010 on Siesta Key at 8:00 a.m. donate to Team Euphemia Haye at http://ow.ly/14pTw.

We are writing to you once again in hopes that you will generously donate money to a cause that is very near and dear to our hearts.   Juvenile Diabetes and all that is involved with it came to the forefront of our lives in June of 2001 when I was diagnosed.   Since that time it has been a mission of ours to do anything possible to find a cure; this is why we support The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

Juvenile Diabetes (Type 1) is VERY different from Type 2 Diabetes.  Type 1 is an autoimmune disease that has no cure and cannot be treated with diet and exercise and NEVER goes away.  Because the body is attacking the Insulin Producing Cells or “Beta Cells” a person with Type 1 diabetes can only survive by injecting insulin multiple times daily.  A person with Type 1 diabetes must check their blood sugar multiple times everyday as well.  I test my blood sugar between 4 and 12 times depending on the day, how I feel, how much I have exercised and what I am eating.  Testing involves making myself  bleed with a “lancet” and feeding a droplet of blood to an electronic meter that will tell me if I am in a normal range, everything I do from eating to exercising to working to driving to sleeping revolves around these numbers.  Everyday is a balancing act that relies heavily on timing and needles and no matter how hard you try it is never perfect.  My body is bombarded by an invasive barrage of sharp things on average of 20 times per day and while I am grateful for these tools, it is NOT a cure, this is just Life Support.

As an adult I have learned to live with these daily challenges. I can’t imagine telling a preschooler with Type1 that they can’t go out to play because their blood sugar is too low or that they can’t have snacks with the rest of the children because their blood sugar is too high, or having to test an infant’s blood sugar as much as I test my own, knowing that if you don’t the consequences could be fatal.

JDRF is a wonderful foundation whose researchers are working not just on a cure but also on devices and equipment that will make the lives of people like me and others with this chronic disease easier, safer and more manageable.   Too, JDRF provides a sense of invaluable camaraderie for those suffering and desperate for a cure.   

JDRF is the leader in research leading to a cure for Type 1 Diabetes in the world.  It sets the global agenda for diabetes research, and is the largest charitable funder and advocate of diabetes science worldwide.

Since its founding in 1970 by parents of children with type 1 diabetes, JDRF has awarded more than $1.3 billion to diabetes research, including more than $156 million in FY2008.  In FY2008, the Foundation funded more than 1,000 centers, grants in laboratories, hospitals, and industry, and fellowships in 22 countries.

Your contribution would mean a great deal to us, others suffering as a result of Type 1 and those yet to be diagnosed.   The 3.2  WALK is March 20, 2010 on Siesta Key at 8:00 a.m.  Team Euphemia Haye will be there!

With Gratitude,

Kate & Rob Houle and  D’Arcy & Ray Arpke

It you would like to contribute to the Walk, you may send a check made out to JDRF to the restaurant

Our address here is 5540 Gulf of Mexico Drive Longboat Key, FL 34228 – be sure to write “Team Euphemia Haye” on the memo line.  Or you may donate online at http://ow.ly/14pTw.  THANKS!!  We look forward to seeing you at the walk and or we will let you know how we did!