When I first met 4-year old Jamie Kurtzig, she was wearing mis-matched socks, a pink tutu and a stuffed monkey backpack.  Her blond curls were unruly and showed the signs of a nap in the car and some kind of mischief.

Sara is Jamie’s mother.  When I first met Sara, we chatted about how we both had 4-year olds (mine’s a boy), nap time, healthy snacks and pre-school.  We talked about all of the similarities in the development stages of our little ones.  The main difference was that Jamie has type 1 diabetes and has been insulin dependent since she was 18 months old.

The Kurtzig Family

My son hates shots more than he hates water in his nose when he swims.  I have had to trick him into going to the doctors office for his flu shots and the moment he realizes where we are going, the screaming begins.  Jamie has had to endure finger pricks and insulin shots since she was 18 months old.  This is the life she knows and until a cure for diabetes is found, she will continue counting carbs and keeping up with the other children on the playground.  I was mesmerized by this little girl who was living her little life to the fullest.

In 2008, Jamie and Sara had a brilliant idea.  Sara and her husband Andy had attended the Hope Gala the previous year and Jamie enjoyed seeing her parents all dressed up.  She asked her mommy why there wasn’t a dress-up event for kids.

That is when the idea was hatched to create Royal Ball: Kingdom for a Cure.  It was an event for parents and children where everyone dresses up in royal attire and attends an activity filled evening and sit-down dinner.  And it could raise money to fund research to find a cure for diabetes.  Friends and family of the Kurtzig family could not have been more supportive.  The event raised over $100,000 in its’ first year and has since raised over $250,000.

The Kurtzig family and Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation invites you to attend the 3rd annual Royal Ball: Kingdom for a Cure at the Mission Bay Conference Center in San Francisco on March 21st, 2009 from 3:30pm – 7:00pm.  Tickets can be purchased online at www.curetype1.org/royalball or by contacting JDRF at 415-977-0360.

Alison Urmson
JDRF Staff

The luxury residential tower Millennium Tower in San Francisco presented a designer showcase entitled Icons of Design, that featured more than 25 of the Bay Area’s most prestigious designers. The designers’ work was showcased in the four Grand Residences (usually not open to the general public) that occupy the building’s entire 52^nd floor.   Each of four charities benefited from the ticket sales on each of the last four weekends of the showcase.  The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation benefit weekend was October 31st/November 1st.

We were asked to manage the two day events and as one of the volunteers I must say that it was a pleasure to spend my time in truly wonderful design.  Special thanks to those who volunteered their time to help us staff the event.  They include Janet Ortiz-Ogao, Anne Davis, Karen Croteau, Isabel Schneider, Petra Kubler, Jim Duncan, Micki Cooper, Clarie Wolfe, Florence Tam and Petrina James.  Also thanks to my colleagues at JDRF (Vicki, Lisa, Cory, Jack, Caroline and Eric) who volunteered part of their weekends to be sure we had a full complement of volunteers on hand to manage expected crowds.   I am sure everyone joins me in thanking Mavie and Frank, who in addition to volunteering, did most of the coordination on behalf of JDRF.

On the JDRF Halloween weekend, 242 people attended the Icons of Design. JDRF collections totaled an impressive $6050.

Very special thanks to Diana Nelson of the Millennium Tower for bringing this opportunity to JDRF.  We so much appreciate it.  Finally, to the 242 fortunate people who donated $25 to JDRF for the privilege of seeing the Icons of Design showcase, thank you, once again.

More than three million people are living with type 1 diabetes in the United States today.   More than 75,000 people in just the Bay Area are living with diabetes.  Did you know that 30,000 people will be diagnosed with type 1 diabetes this year?

Type 1 diabetes is a devastating disease which strikes children and adults suddenly, but lasts a lifetime. People with diabetes need to test their blood sugar and give themselves insulin injections multiple times per day – every day for the rest of their lives.  Insulin, however, is not a cure for diabetes, nor does it prevent its eventual and devastating complications.  Unfortunately, more children and adults will be diagnosed with diabetes this year than last year.

With more than 200 Walk locations across the country and five Walks in the Bay Area, Walk to Cure Diabetes is the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation’s largest fundraiser!  The goal is to raise more than $90 millions for diabetes research this year.  The mission of JDRF is to find cures for diabetes and its complications through the support of research.  JDRF is the world’s largest charitable funder and advocate of type 1 diabetes research.

Register to Walk to Cure Diabetes.  Help fuel the research that will cure diabetes.