In two weeks, Bernard Farrell will be riding in the Bike the Miles annual fundraiser to support Dr. Faustman's research to cure Type 1 diabetes. His participation is especially intrinsic because it is one day away from his 35th anniversary of becoming a Type 1 diabetic.

Bernard plans to raise $10,000 for Dr. Faustman's research. Last year he raised $7,500. The entire event raised a whopping $301,000! All of this funding is going toward the human trials to cure Type 1 diabetes. After discovering that the insulin-producing islet cells of the pancreas are capable of regeneration, Dr. Faustman now needs to test her treatment, already known to be safe in humans, to see if the effects are as positive as they were in the animal model.

It goes without say that this is terribly important for Bernard as much as it is for every man, woman and child touched by Type 1 diabetes. Bike the Miles is an annual event that was started by Susan Root and Jacqueline Fusco in 2004. Both, Susan and Jacqueline, have children who are Type 1 diabetics. Please visit Bernard's site to support his ride and the drive to cure Type 1 diabetes!

I realize Halloween isn't even upon us, but if you're one of those organized early holiday shoppers consider the American Diabetes Association Gift of Hope. Every penny of profit from this gift catalog funds diabetes research. You're spending your money on a gift and research for a cure. Choose from over 30 holiday cards, a 2008 calendar and 40 gifts. Hmmm ... the Striped Barnstorm Frame caught my eye.

Gift of Hope has been around since 1971, when a group of Minneapolis-area parents of children with diabetes started selling holiday cards to raise money for diabetes research. Now under the American Diabetes Association (ADA) name, Gift of Hope has raised over $22 million to date.

If you're a budding artist, check out ADA Gift of Hope's 2008 Holiday Art Search. Artwork must be created by or dedicated to a person with diabetes. Winning entries are used to produce the holiday cards and gifts. Deadline is November 1, 2007.

Not too long ago, I had the pleasure of speaking with David Kliff, of Diabetic Investor. When diabetes came knocking on David's door - he took the higher road, literally, and many would agree he has made the most of it.

David created Diabetic Investor to share his opinion as a leading authority on the business of diabetes from the unique perspective of a diabetic. Along the way he has gained interest in leading-edge technologies and breakthrough medicines to enhance the treatment of diabetes. His research and his craft for controlling his diabetes has significantly impacted his health for the best - and it keeps getting better.

David is now a marathon runner. His training efforts have resulted in a resounding 45 pound weight loss, cutting his insulin dose substantially, and improving his overall health. He launched a blog to promote his participation in the New York City Marathon this November. Checkout Dave's Run for Diabetes, and show your support for his efforts to go the distance for diabetes - all 26.2 miles!

The Rusing family of Tucson, Arizona, run a remarkably successful lemonade stand. The stand began as a way to keep the kids occupied, but turned into a bit of a money maker. It's been so successful, in fact, that it's now in the running for the title of Best Lemonade Stand in America. Yes! There is such a thing. Cute, huh?

The Rusings donate the proceeds from the stand to diabetes research. The stand is named "The Mighty Quinns" for Quinn Rusing. Quinn, who is four-years-old, was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at age three. He helps run the lemonade stand, along with mom, Carolyn, and six-year-old twin sisters, Cali and Olivia. The secret to their success appears to be the free cookies. That's right. Free Famous Amos cookies with each 25-cent glass of lemonade purchased.

Spot anything odd about this story? Lemonade stand with free cookies as a diabetes fundraiser?? Um, what about all that sugar?! I spotted this story about the Rusings on the Tucson Citizen website. Another reader has posted this comment: "With 60 grams of sugars in a 12 ounce glass, the shareholders of Bristol-Myers-Squibb and Merck are gonna be in real good shape."

Eight-year-old Sam Murray of Massachusetts has become an official face of type 1 diabetes for the Joslin Diabetes Center. Sam and one other child will appear on billboards throughout his home state. The billboards promote diabetes awareness and that ever-critical (yet never-ending!) task, fundraising.

The ad campaign is a year-long endeavor by Joslin, paid for using $500,000-worth of billboard space donated by ClearChannel. In one of the designs, Sam poses with a glucose monitor in his outstretched hand, a chalkboard in the background, with the slogan "Let's erase diabetes from his future."

Sam Murray was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes only last year. His parents say the diagnosis might have taken longer to secure if not for the fact that another local boy had been diagnosed with the disease not so long before, so Sam's mom and dad were already somewhat familiar with the symptoms.

And, no, he's not shy about taking such a public role: "I thought it would be pretty cool to have my picture all over the place," remarks Sam. Says dad Dan, "Sammy from the get-go has really adapted to this much better than we could have possibly imagined. He's kind of taken on this role as ambassador."

Click here to see a Boston Globe photo of the billboard image.

Juice manufacturer Old Orchard Brands is expanding its financial support for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF). A press release issued by the company announced intentions to give up to one million dollars in new funding. The company hopes to raise money for the JDRF with its Healthy Balance Challenge, in which twenty cents from each sale of Old Orchard Brands Healthy Balance line of low-sugar fruit juices will be donated to the JDRF.

The JDRF accepted Old Orchard's support last year and, according to Old Orchard, the company has pledged $650,000 worth of cash and product donations through 2009. Money raised through the Healthy Balance Challenge will be in addition to that sum. Arnold Donald, CEO of the JDRF, says partners such as Old Orchard Brands "care deeply about the work we do in researching a cure for type 1 diabetes. They continue to support our organization with innovative retail-driven programs that increase funding for research, and that's a rare and valuable partner to have."

You could also say that every dollar in support for the JDRF equals good publicity and increased sales for Old Orchard. Of course, I would never be so cynical.

The American Diabetes Association (ADA) recently announced, Step Up To Fight Diabetes, a unique, new fundraiser. Up to 1,000 participants will pledge to raise a minimum of $1,000 in sponsorships as they walk 10 miles across Philadelphia, stepping up and down 25 staircases along the way. The ADA chose Philly as its inaugural event city due to its historic staircases (Rocky, Rocky!), and the city's dedication to improving health. The event will be held October 20, 2007.

Walkers will pass Independence Park, City Hall, even head down the Schuylkill River path to the Philadephia Art Museum. I was enamored by the Schuylkill's winding beauty my very first visit to Philly. During each subsequent trip (I have family there), I have always hiked or jogged along the river.

Through monies raised, the ADA will fight the rise of diabetes nationwide through awareness, information and advocacy. Participants will be inspired to challenge themselves physically -- becoming role models for the next generation. In fact, a 12-week training program just started August 4, so now is the time to sign up and join this first-ever fundraiser. Check out the ADA's Step Up To Fight Diabetes website -- you can register, start/join a team, sponsor or be a part of it all by volunteering. The site also offers comprehensive support to help you raise the $1,000 in sponsorships.

The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation Capitol Chapter has become the only JDRF chapter in the country to put a new spin on fundraising. And what better place to do it than Washington? The Chapter is currently planning the second annual Spin to Win fundraiser for next fall.

A proven success with JDRF's Canadian chapter, it is the organization's newest event -- an innovative, high-energy, outdoor event where participants from a variety of local industries pedal to a fast-paced musical beat for 8 minutes in a race to see who can rack up the most mileage and the most money for diabetes research. Each spinner is asked to raise at least $150.

Last year's inaugural event raised more than $75,000 and members of Congress, athletes, and TV personalities were among the participants. The Chapter is looking to double the amount raised this year.

This year's fundraiser will take place Thursday, October 18 at the old DC Convention Center site and involve five-person teams from the Washington business community who have raised money for a cure for diabetes. Visit the Spin to Win web page or call the JDRF office at 202.465.4122 for more information about the 2007 Spin to Win.

Seriously, you'd have to have a heart of pure stone not to be moved by this YouTube video called "Hope is in a Cure." To a fairly sappy soundtrack (okay, okay I'm not a Mariah Carey fan), we see a photo slideshow unfold, telling the story of one little girl's daily experiences with type 1 diabetes. The power of this piece is in its simplicity: a series of one family's snapshots illustrates perfectly what these brave kids go through and the sacrifices the whole family must make when type 1 enters a child's life. Not to mention the agony the moms and dads go through. That is something I can only imagine - and hope I never have to experience myself.

There's a heartbreaker of a shot in here of the little girl asleep, hands tucked daintily and securely under her pillow, asleep and in one sense relaxed, yet on guard against the next skin prick she knows will eventually come.

"Hope is in a Cure" was posted by Lisa of Londonderry, New Hampshire. I don't know who made it. Check it out today. Better yet, send the link to a few people you know. Too few people understand what "type 1 families" live with day-to-day. Let people know that diabetes never takes a vacation and never sleeps. And let them know the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation needs our support - you can start by supporting the upcoming Walk to Cure Diabetes.

Do you or a loved one have diabetes? Are you a healthcare professional caring for people with diabetes? Living with the disease or caring for a person with diabetes is an up and down journey. Inspired by Diabetes is a global campaign asking all those impacted by diabetes to share their story.

The campaign's Creative Expressions Competition just opened to the world on June 21, and is accepting creative entries through January 31, 2008. If you have a creative bent, tell your story through a short essay or narrative; up to three photographs; an original drawing/painting or musical score.

Entries will be judged across category, art type and age group, starting as young as age five. The Grand Prize Winner across each category will win a $5,000 donation to the charity of their choice, a trophy and a paid trip for two to the media announcement of the winners and the global exhibition. I wish I could tell you the exhibition is planned for an exotic location, but it hasn't been announced, yet!

Inspired by Diabetes, a collaboration between Eli Lilly and the International Diabetes Federation's Unite for Diabetes Initiative, is bringing those close to the disease together to try and raise awareness of the global burden of diabetes. All entrants will receive two blue circle pins, the global symbol of diabetes. I had never heard of the blue circle before, this is one pin I would like to sport. Perhaps the blue circle will become as powerful and recognizable as the beautiful pink ribbon for cancer awareness.

Hmm, another "walking for diabetes" fundraiser in the news. But, what's this? Here's a guy walking with a giant inflatable rubber globe. Novel, huh? Check out the picture at right.

Erik Bendl, aka "World Guy," is walking 416 miles from his home in Louisville, Kentucky, all the way to Pittsburgh. The plan is to raise money for the American Diabetes Association (ADA). Just as important, Bendl hopes to raise awareness about the condition. Every step of the way, Bendl is rolling his eight-foot-tall globe too. Bendl got the globe from a summer camp, whose staff had no use for it.

Bendl is the son of the late Kentucky state Rep. Gerta Bendl, who suffered from diabetes. Bendl was inspired to do something not only because of his mom's experience, but also by watching lots of other friends deal with the condition. He's encountering lots of good support along the way in the form of conversation, kind words, and meals. "I'm almost brought to tears by people's kindness," he told the Cincinnati Post.

Bendl and the rubber globe are accompanied by Bendl's faithful dog, Nice, who is probably thinking "this is the longest walk pops has ever taken me on!"

Click here to visit Erik Bendl's MySpace blog. He also has a website where supporters are invited to send in a donation for the ADA. Want to talk to the man himself? Go ahead and give him a buzz at (502) 408-5772.

The News-Record of Greensboro, North Carolina, reports on a local entrepreneur who's come up with a novel way to raise money for a good cause. Land developer Roy Carroll plans to donate the profits from one of his new houses to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF). Carroll, whose sixteen-year-old daughter has Type 1 diabetes, will make the donation just as soon as the house is sold. All the material and labor for the house will be donated. Carroll expects the house to be finished in November and estimates it will sell for around $168,000.

Generous? Yes. Not to mention something of a tradition, this being the third house Carroll has built as a fundraiser for the JDRF, an organization that Carroll hopes will eventually be successful in its bid to find a cure for Type 1 diabetes. A happy spokesperson for the local chapter of the JDRF says all the money from a big donation like that can be channeled directly to research.

Carroll's wife, Vanessa, is a JDRF volunteer who says being involved with the organization has been her "therapy" since the diagnosis of their daughter Brittany four years ago. As for her husband, he plans to continue doing his bit to help out, saying he will continue to build one house per year for the JDRF until a cure is found. He also hopes this will inspire other people in the construction industry to dive in and initiate similar projects.

"1 day, 1 cause, 1 goal," is the slogan assigned to the American Diabetes Association's (ADA) new fundraiser: "Step Out to Fight Diabetes." The big annual event is basically a retooled version of what the ADA used to call "America's Walk for Diabetes." The plan is to hold walks in two hundred American cities on various days over the course of a couple of weeks this coming fall.

So what's involved, you ask? It's a ten-mile walking course designed to be easy enough for about any fitness level. The twist: it requires some stair climbing. Philadelphia participants will climb ten staircases in landmark buildings, such as Philly's City Hall and the majestic front steps of the Philly Museum of Art (immortalized in the movie Rocky). Trotting up and downstairs, you're supposed to contemplate and be inspired by the "peaks and valleys" encountered by diabetics the world over.

The ADA has launched a very professional campaign to publicize "Step Out" with press releases and a snazzy website. You can register to participate on the website, and they'll send you a cute registration pack. You can also check out health stats, facts about the staircases involved in the event, and read true life diabetes stories on the site. By joining in, the ADA says you will be helping "find a cure" and also help raise awareness in your own community. To the former: maybe. To the latter: sure - awareness-raising is always a good thing.

Funding in support of the "Step Out" campaign comes courtesy of big-name, big-business donors like Kmart (Pharmacy), RiteAid, Wal-mart/Sam's Club, and Equal.

I once owned a racing bike. I could lift that gorgeous white Bianchi with my little finger. I bought it in anticipation of training and entering Ride The Rockies, a five day cycle sojourn through Colorado in the summer of 1998. I am a sports nut, a rockclimber, a backpacker... but prior to Ride The Rockies, the longest cross-country cycling I ever did was a one-hour stretch in a mini-triathlon.

My Ride the Rockies experience was unforgettable. A novice from Chicago flatlands, I had never biked more than 40 miles in one stretch. Suddenly I was averaging 65 miles a day over multiple mountain summits. The race was breathtakingly beautiful and miserably horrendous. Often in painful despair chugging up those mountains, my sitting bones have never been the same. I completed the mileage each day near dead-last, except for the ultra-hot 100+ mile day when I bonked (lost all energy reserves) at mile 93 and had to take the 'ride of shame' in a shuttle van the rest of the way. I should not have eaten those dozen homemade chocolate chip cookies locals were selling out of a big red cooler for $.25 each. I still blame the zero-protein cookies for my athletic failure, along with an undiagnosed ACL tear in my left knee which left me one-legged most of the trip. It just couldn't have been me. But Ride The Rockies is the only event I have declared I will never do again. Humbled, I sold the bike.

So my interest piqued when a reader of The Diabetes Blog sent me the news (thank you!) Team Type 1 (TT1) just won the Race Across America 2007 (RAAM) in the Corporate Challenge category. Started in 1982, RAAM is the longest ultra-distance bicycle race in the world. Cyclists hit the pedal on the West Coast and hit the brakes somewhere on the East Coast, covering over 3,000 grueling miles. TT1 is an eight-person corporate cycling team comprised of cyclists with type 1 diabetes. Founded in 2004 by Phil Southerland (diabetic since 7 months) and Joe Eldridge (diabetic since 14 years), TT1 raises both money for diabetes research and awareness for young diabetics denied health insurance for a "pre-existing" condition. You can make a donation right on their website.

Don't miss TT1's A1C Challenge, where they teach you how to strive for a 6.5 A1C, eliminating long-term complications of diabetes. The TT1 2007 Blog has a slew of photos. TT1 took it all in 2006, and just won again in 2007 -- anything is possible with type 1 diabetes.

The Wall Street Journal posted an interesting story about a man who needed a drug to treat his ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease. He could not get the funding for a large scale trial to approve the drug. I empathize, completely! See that picture of the Hulk? That's me. I'm angry. You won't like me when I'm angry.

As a type 1 diabetic, my concern for improving the lives of people affected by diabetes involves preventing and reversing the complications associated with the disease. The American Diabetes Association states the same somewhere in their mission statement. Ok ADA, put MY money where YOUR 501(C)3 is!!

When I called the American Diabetes Association and shared my excitement for the C-peptide treatment in human trials (in Sweden) reversing type 1 diabetic complications - I was floored when I heard their response.

Allie B: Can the American Diabetes Association please encourage a big pharmaceutical company to sponsor these trials here in the United States? The results in Sweden have conclusively shown reversal of complications associated with type 1 diabetes.

Mat P at the American Diabetes Association: The topic of C-peptide is very sexy in scientific forums. BUT - we don't like to tell big pharmaceutical companies what to do with their money because we don't like them to tell us what to do with ours.

Allie B (in my head): WHAT THE F%^&*)(*&^%$F do you DO as an organization to improve the lives of people affected by diabetes if you are not going to push for trials to prevent and arrest complications associated with the disease?

I'm afraid the American Diabetes Association and I do not share the same goals any longer. It was a long marriage, over 21 years - but I want a divorce. The largest diabetic organization in the United States is not willing to assist in getting a trial underway to prevent and reverse complications that could affect 2 million type 1 diabetics and between 2 and 4 million type 2 diabetics injecting insulin (without C-Peptide).

I didn't feel this way until I realized how disconnected their perception of diabetes is from the reality of the disease. What do you think?