It Was 20 Years Ago This September That Our Son Jake Was Diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes

Dear Friends,

It was 20 years ago this September that our son Jake was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. Since then we have been committedto raising funds to find a cure. This year is no exception. On August 26th we will be riding our bikes in Loveland, Colorado as part of the JDRF Ride to Cure Diabetes. This will be our 13th ride with the West Michigan team. We look forward to the challenge of the mountains and raising a lot of money for the cause.

Jakewas diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in September of 1997. It has been with him, and us, through elementary school, high school, and college. Now Jake is living on his own in Chicago,but we are still concerned about his health. Diabetes is a constant reminder of the fragility of life. Jake has to deal with this life threatening disease on a daily basis. He pokes his finger in order to draw blood to check his blood sugar, four to six times a day. That is over 40,000 finger pokes since diagnosis day. Every two to three days he inserts a long catheter under the skin of his abdomen and attaches it to his insulin pump. This pump helps keep Jake alive. Insulin is NOT a cure, it is life support. Long term he runs the risk of developing serious complications that could lead to blindness and amputation.What we go through to participate in a JDRF ride pales in comparison to what Jake goes through every day.

Today we are asking for your support. We have set a family goal to raise $10,000. Your contribution will help fund research to cure Type 1 diabetes. Over 84% of all the donations collected by the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation go directly to diabetes research. Checks can be made out to Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (or JDRF) and sent to us at 6184 Archer St. NE, Rockford, MI 49341. You can also donate on-line. Go to There you can track our training progress, see photos of the ride and donate to the cause. In the links section on the left side of the page click on “Donate to Tom” or “Donate to Mary” and follow the easy directions. Thank you in advance for your support.

Tom and Mary Scheidel