Last week I had the opportunity to speak at a luncheon at the the Democtratic National Convention.  I spoke on behalf of my headgear sponsor Eli Lilly.  I pasted the speech that I gave below.

Thank you Scott,

I am honored to be here today to share my story and a bit of Lilly’s story with you. I have been intertwined with Lilly since 2002 to show children with diabetes that there is no need for limits when it comes to there ambitions and dreams. As the summer Olympics came to a close it was apparent to me that the stories of athlete’s triumphs and failures are metaphors for all of our own ups and downs. I think the entire world was inspired by Michael Phelps and his incredible achievement. I aim to inspire a smaller but extremely significant group of people with my story and racing.

One of the first things I tell children with diabetes is that this is by far the best time in history to be diabetic. Thanks is owed to companies like Lilly, who invented a fast acting insulin that has improved treatment and helped ease the complexity of every day diabetes management. Every innovation in diabetic care has the potential to better the lives of millions of people. Thanks to these improvements I am able to race at the highest level of my sport without being at a competitive disadvantage. This would not have been possible only twenty years ago.

I was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes in the summer of 2000 just two months after giving up a full athletic scholarship at the University of Vermont to train full time with the US Ski Team in preparation for the 2002 Olympics. The doctor I saw told me that my Olympic ambitions were over. I wouldn’t hear it. Using every modern diabetic tool I could get my hands on I not only qualified for the 2002 Olympics I helped our team to its best finish ever. In 2010 I am planning to ski in four events at my third Olympics. My glucose management strategies have changed with better options in the last eight years but my determination to never be limited by this condition has remained rock solid.

Over the years I have worked with Lilly to spread this message at camps for kids with diabetes around the country, and to raise awareness for the disease. The camps I have gone to are amazing. It is easy to feel isolated and alone with diabetes. Many schools around the country are not equipped to properly care for their diabetic students, which only exacerbates these feelings of isolation for the children. Some schools outright discriminate against these students by not allowing for glucose testing and other essential treatments while studying. This has led to placing diabetic children in remedial classes despite having no intellectual or learning disabilities. The last thing any child wants is something that makes them feel like an outsider. By coming together at camp, children with diabetes get a sense of unity that gives them strength. This harmony is contagious and has consumed me as well. The kids feed off the familiarity of the challenges and hardships that they face in their daily lives and leave camp with a newfound determination to live life to the fullest.

One young woman, who attended diabetes camp for many years, finally came to terms with using an insulin pump and was confident enough to bare her stomach and pump for a self portrait she painted. Her expression of art – like those you see around the room – is a way of them to display their feelings about diabetes, coming to terms with it, through Lilly’s Inspired by Diabetes campaign. In fact, she won the grand prize for children in the United States for this painting.

As Scott mentioned, the Inspired by Diabetes campaign invites people affected by diabetes to share their stories about how the disease has impacted their lives — through written or visual expressions (art, essay, photography, you name it.). We’re especially interested in the stories of children and their families, but the contest is open to anyone affected by this disease. The response to this movement has been overwhelmingly positive. In just the first year of the drive there were 900 entries from across the world. 900 people expressed their feelings about this disease through their personal artwork. These images convey the pain and joy of life with diabetes and will inspire diabetics worldwide. As the second year of this program begins I know that the participation will only grow.

The best part about the Inspired by Diabetes campaign is that people are not only able to find their own voice, but at the same time, they are able to help support other children around the world living with diabetes. For every entry into the COMPETITION, Lilly makes a donation to the Life for a Child program – as well as to children right here in the United States. Lilly also donates money for every US entry, to a scholarship program for kids from low-income families to attend diabetes camps.

This program is unique because it gives people the opportunity to express and to share their own struggles and triumphs with diabetes. The artist benefits from gaining a better realization of what the diabetic condition means to them. And by entering into the contest they are supporting other people with diabetes around the world. It is a win-win for everyone involved.

As I mentioned, I’m touched and inspired by the children I meet at diabetes camps, and I’m thrilled Lilly is making it possible for more kids to attend these camps. Camps shouldn’t just be for children who can afford the price tag; the experience is just too important, and every kid with diabetes should have a chance to go.

I’m also deeply touched by the work being done for children in the developing world. While the average life expectancy of children with diabetes in developing countries is unknown, the IDF estimates that it can vary from a few months to a couple decades. Children can die quickly of high blood sugar levels through inaccurate diagnosis, lack of insulin or lack of expert care. Having high blood sugar is tortuous and the physical and mental affects are like having the flu and a stroke at the same time.

With a quarter of a million children under the age of 15 living with diabetes in developing countries, Lilly and the International Diabetes Federation had to act![1]

You’ve seen part of the Life for a Child film. I can’t say it any better than that.

It has been my pleasure to collaborate with Lilly because they understand that therapeutic solutions alone won’t stem the tide of diabetes around the world. Sometimes it’s the non-medical and creative solutions that not only make a difference in someone’s life, but help them stay positive and motivated about their future. With these programs and the life-saving therapies we have in place, we MUST look toward the future and continue to innovate. We need research to development new therapeutic options, and we must commit to effective preventive measures. We simply have to do more for the millions of people like me worldwide who have diabetes and for those not yet diagnosed. Everyone has a dream, whether it is to be doctor, a mother, an Olympic gold medalist or to simply live a long a healthy life.

Again, it has been my honor to be with you today. Thank you.

This entry was posted on Sunday, August 31st, 2008 at 8:53 pm and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.