Dear JDRF Friends and Family,
We are writing you all to ask you to join us in making a difference to JDRF, which is so near and dear to our hearts. On October 29th, JDRF will hold its annual Promise Ball Gala at the Phoenician in Scottsdale, Arizona. We are honored to be involved as leaders of the event this year and sharing our story to inspire change.
JDRF has been a charity of choice for The Roberts Family since March of 2017, when our oldest daughter, Brighton, was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) just after she turned 4. T1D left us filled with fear, anger and devastating sadness wondering how we all would adjust to this new lifestyle. JDRF’s support, connections and advice beginning the day we were admitted to the hospital was life changing and helped us learn and grow tremendously.
What is amazing is how far our progress has come. In fiscal year 2021, JDRF drew $425.7 million in additional funding and investments for T1D therapy research and development from partners in the private and public sectors. There are more than 50 human clinical trials (up from about zero in 2000). And all of this has been enabled by volunteers and staff teams around the globe.
Largely because of JDRF, we are on the verge of realizing so many therapeutic options, including some that are especially exciting to us:
Encapsulation. This is the implantation of insulin-producing cells that are protectively encased order to protect them from the immune system. For T1D patients, it is their own immune systems that destroyed their ability to generate insulin in the first place.
Glucose responsive insulin. This is another amazing idea through which T1D patients could potentially use synthetic insulin that would be absorbed in the bloodstream as needed to control blood sugar levels.
Artificial Pancreas Systems. This is far along and is a self-regulating insulin pump that can make a material difference to T1D patients by dramatically improving their blood sugar controls.
In our 4 years with T1D in the family, we have seen amazing advancements and progress from sensors to insulin pumps and their communication to each other, adding feasibility to many lives. Today, these and other JDRF-sponsored therapeutics offer real promises for improving the lives of millions.
So why do we support JDRF, rather than donating to research teams directly? First, more than 80 percent of what JDRF spends goes directly to research and research-related education—among the highest percentages for charities nationwide. Secondly, by having strategic objectives and targeted funding, JDRF’s aim is to speed up the pace research. This encourages research collaboration and minimizes research overlap. JDRF acts as a catalyst to find the most promising, most innovative research projects around the world and invests in them.
There are three ways you can make an impact and support our efforts in this year’s Promise Ball:
- Take advantage of sponsorship opportunities.
- Reserve a table and attend. Come and enjoy a fun-filled evening and support a great cause!
- Make a donation to help the evening’s Fund A Cure effort. If you could do this, your gift, like ours, could be matched by those in attendance that evening. Without any question, having a meaningful match for those in attendance will be important in making this event a success. Fund A Cure gifts are 100% tax deductible and directly impact the important mission of JDRF.
I hope that you will be able to support our cause, donate, and attend a one-of-a-kind evening.
Thank you so much and best regards,
Scott & Ren Roberts
