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Last week Michelle Consorte held an information session about Juvenile Diabetes for those of us going on the JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation) Walk on October 4. Diabetes is a growing problem in the world around us, and almost everyone is affected by it in one way or another. It’s possible that the disease could affect one of our friends, run in our family, or affect ourselves. When asked if someone in our family had diabetes, almost everyone in the room raised their hand.
Michelle was very informative when speaking about the two different types of diabetes and shared with us her story and struggles with the disease. I knew that diabetes was a problem, but people play it down so much that I don’t think I ever realized how much damage diabetes can cause. Hearing about all the medical issues really opened my eyes to how serious diabetes is when it goes untreated. People can develop cataracts, lose limbs, and become grossly underweight. Although Michelle talked about a different type of diabetes, with the growth of obesity in our culture today, diabetes is becoming a growing epidemic. Learning about all the complications the disease can cause really made me think about how I’m managing my own health, how I eat and how, especially since my grandfather had diabetes, I’m at a greater risk of developing diabetes. This disease can have such a negative effect that I’m personally starting to become more concerned with how I’m living my life.
At the end of the session, Michelle gave each of us a pluot (a cross between an apricot and a plum if you were curious) and had us insert the tubing that would be connected to an insulin pump. With the pump, the tubing and needle has to be changed once every three days. I honestly couldn’t imagine having to jab myself with a needle on a regular basis. The entire session really got me excited for the walk on Sunday and being able to contribute to the cause of finding not just a treatment for diabetes, but a cure. I sincerely hope that everyone who is able to go will be at the walk and help the world get one step closer to being a diabetes-free place.
After the walk, Michelle will try to get a panel together with people from an international organization that works to educate people about diabetes. She hopes to raise awareness about the fact that diabetes cannot be treated with home remedies. I really think this would be really interesting and informative. If you want to know more about it email Michelle and ask her what you can do to help her at michelleconsorte@mail.adelphi.edu,
Written by Alison Conforto, LGS sophomore
Saturday October 4th, nineteen LGSers and I participated in the Annual Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) walk, in beautiful Belmont State Park. Our team leader was Michelle Consorte, an LGS sophomore, who organized and put together our team called “Michelle’s Adelphians Care.” At 8:30am, an Adelphi Bus picked us up in front of the University Center at Adelphi and drove us to Belmont Lake State Park, about 30 minutes away. There we met up with others on our team who drove there, and we all registered and gave JDRF the money we had fundraised. We all received free T-shirts, and then began the walk around the park.
It was a great bonding experience for all the people who went, as we talked and leisurely walked on the path around the pond and though the colorful turning trees. There were facts about Juvenile Diabetes along the path and quotes from children who have diabetes. One that stood out to me was from a 12 –year-old girl: “I would give anything to go one day without diabetes.” This was the reason we were walking and fundraising, so one day soon that little girl, and many other people, will be cured of their diabetes. Our team was able to raise $982.11 for researching a cure for diabetes which surpassed our original goal. This amount was even larger than last year’s!
It was wonderful to know we were helping, and it was also a lot of fun to be there. On a big open field there were many fun things to do and good things to eat. There was music playing, a petting zoo, a big blow up slide, a blow up obstacle course, and free food and drinks from the many sponsors. This was my second year going to the walk, and like last year, it was a lot of fun. I hope to be able to continue attending and keep taking steps toward a cure for Juvenile Diabetes.
Written by Emily Dernbach, LGS Sophomore
LGS freshman Michelle Consorte held an informational session on Juvenile Diabetes in the LGS Lounge on Wednesday, September 17th. The session was held to promote awareness and fundraising for the Juvenile Diabetes Walk which will be held on Sunday, October 5th. Although the main focus of the workshop was on Type 1 Juvenile Diabetes, the session informed students about all aspects and types of diabetes.
Also, Michelle shared her experience struggling with Type 1 diabetes and explained how she dealt with it. At the end of the information session, everyone was given a fruit and a needle that was part of an insulin pump to practice using the pump. This session explained to us what people with diabetes go through on a daily basis. Hopefully we will have a large turnout at the Juvenile Diabetes Walk.
Written by Roshini Givergis
On October 5, 2008, Levermore Global Scholars participated in the walk sponsored by the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation as part of Michelle Consorte’s initiative to raise awareness about Juvenile Diabetes. Below is Michelle’s reflection of the event.
Attending a cultural event is one experience, but being the person who actually started it and then being able to watch it unfold is completely different and much more rewarding. Juvenile Diabetes is a disease that I am rather intimate with. Thus, rather than just sitting by, I wanted to do something that would create an impact and help to find a cure for this terrible disease.
The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, the organization that sponsored the walk, was very helpful when I told them that I wanted to form a team. JDRF also provided me with the necessary materials for my presentation about Juvenile Diabetes. I think that the presentation and the walk were simple, yet effective ways to spread the word about Juvenile Diabetes across the Adelphi campus. Both of the events did not require a huge amount of effort from any one person, but they still had a great impact. I knew that I was having an effect on people when they would see me and immediately go “Oh yeah, I have to register for your walk!” This really made me feel good about the walk and the fact that my cause was actually getting somewhere.
The turnout for the walk was rather impressive for a first time event. We had about twenty people on the Adelphi team and raised $635 in total. According to one of the signs on the actual trail of the walk, 85% of this money goes directly to research to help discover a cure for Juvenile Diabetes. None of the other 15% will function as a profit for the JDRF, but will go to other aspects of the organization. Even if this does not seem like a lot, in the long run every little amount adds up and helps bring us one step closer to the ultimate goal – the cure.
I am very proud of the Adelphi team, to say the least. Not only for the amount of money that was raised, but for the effort that was given by each person – getting up early on a Sunday morning to come out and walk through the mud (literally) to show support for a cause. Since Diabetes affects so many people on both national and global scales, I think the walk was something everyone enjoyed because it was a way for them to help a cause that they cared about and probably had some personal connection with. The walk, in my mind, provided an excuse for globally conscious people to get together, have fun, and put their enthusiasm to good use. It was also a very social, active and fun event with free food, T-shirts, and music. And of course, the playground, which became a meeting place as well as a focal point for team pictures.
I would love to do this event annually. I think it was a really fun and eye-opening experience for a lot of people. Just being able to see all of the different people who deal with this disease and the various ways that they are taking action against it was extremely inspiring, at least to me.
Written by Michelle Consorte
Edited by Yana Kusayeva |
