Sonia Sotomayor met with delegates from JDRF's Children's Congress to talk about her life with diabetes. In simple and compassionate terms, she told the children how confusing it was when she was diagnosed because she had never seen her mother cry. She was remarkable. The children were remarkable. Sam, who probably doesn't know how cool it is to meet with a member of the Supreme Court listened attentively in the front row. He wanted to know if she was part of the "Justice League"... "sort of" was the best answer for the moment. Read more below:
Spending three days with 150 families that live with Type 1 Diabetes was a unique and inspiring experience. There are no strangers among parents that are all awake at midnight, three and six AM each night or children that share the experience of pricking their fingers ten times per day and are tethered to their insulin pumps at all times. The kids had a great time together and Sam made a friend named Emily, (age four) that he spent most of the time with. I was struck by the poise of some of the older delegates and I know that Sam is developing that quality already as an advocate and as a human being. It goes without saying that the kids did an incredible job of telling their stories to Congress, and I think the FDA took notice of the event. In addition to the delegate families, Kevin Kline, a parent of a child with diabetes himself, testified at the hearing and numerous athletes, scientists and other familiar faces lent their support. During one of the sessions, Sam got up to the microphone and asked Kendall Simmons, an NFL player who has diabetes, how diabetes affects his game. My favorite photo though is the one of Talia at the top of this post with all the younger delegates who somehow manages to not only be included, but to be at the center of it all. Crystal Bowersox (pictured with Sam and the other New York delegates) of American Idol wrote an original song called "Promise to Remember Me" that the kids performed on the steps of the Capitol. You can see the moving performance and some highlights from CC11 below:
Sam is an exceedingly kind, smart, funny nine year old who was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes at 20 months old and celiac disease four years later (almost to the day). "Sam's Friends" was the original name we chose for our fundraising effort for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF). We hope to shine a light on some of the extra challenges this diagnosis presents and on our experience as a family living with diabetes.
**For more about who we are and Sam's diagnosis please click below to read the July 2009 post titled: Diagnosis Parenthood (+/- Diabetes) **
Sonia Sotomayor met with delegates from JDRF's Children's Congress to talk about her life with diabetes. In simple and compassionate terms, she told the children how confusing it was when she was diagnosed because she had never seen her mother cry. She was remarkable. The children were remarkable. Sam, who probably doesn't know how cool it is to meet with a member of the Supreme Court listened attentively in the front row. He wanted to know if she was part of the "Justice League"... "sort of" was the best answer for the moment. Read more below:
