PITTSBURGH — Type one diabetics, their friends, and family are getting ready for the annual Breakthrough T1D Walk this weekend to raise money to find a cure for the disease.
Thousands of people are expected on the North Shore on Sunday, all to support those living with T1D.
Courtney Graham’s daughter is one of them. Addy was diagnosed two years ago at just 4 years old. Being the parent of a child with Type 1 is a full-time job.
“My mind’s always on it. I’m checking her numbers while she’s at school, even overnight when I’m sleeping; I glance up to see what her (insulin) numbers are. Do I need to give her a little bit of juice or do I need to give her a little bit more insulin? It’s constant,” Graham said.
About 20 friends and family of Addy’s will make up “Team Little Hero, Big Steps” in this weekend’s walk.
“We walk for my daughter, but we’re also walking for everyone else who has been diagnosed for type one diabetes, as well as for in the future. We want to walk for a cure,” Graham said. “It’s been amazing just the amount of support that we’ve had from family and friends. It just has us in awe with the donations and the people that are coming to walk with us and for Addy.”
It’s not just the fundraising and the donations for these families. For many of these young diabetics to see others like them, wearing the same glucose pumps and CGM’s as they do, creates a sense of belonging and community.
“I think, just, you know, being part of something bigger than, you know, the day-to-day struggles. We go out, and we celebrate. It’s a celebration of a day, you know, we’re raising money for a cure, but we’re also making those connections with people who are going through the same thing as my daughter,” Graham said.
The donations from the walk go toward research, public advocacy, community support programs, and event expenses. The Western Pennsylvania chapter of Breakthrough T1D made well more than half a million dollars from last year’s walk.
All in hopes of creating a space where Addy and the other 15,000 Type 1 Diabetics in Western Pennsylvania can one day be disease free.
“A cure would mean for me that my daughter could just go to school and participate in activities without all the extra planning. We don’t have to leave the house without a bag, you know, with a bag full of supplies. We won’t have to do the constant monitoring, and you know we wouldn’t have to worry about those future health issues that could come along with type one diabetes,” Graham said.
The Western Pennsylvania and West Virginia Chapter of Breakthrough T1D kicks off its annual walk this Sunday, Oct. 25, at noon from the North Shore Riverfront Park.
Learn more or donate here.
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