October 3rd was Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) Walk Day for 16 friends and family of Connor McDermott, however it was anything but ordinary. Accompanying Connor during the 5K (3.11 miles) walk were 8 members of the 501st Legion, a Star Wars costuming group that often participates in charity walks. The Ohio Garrison is over 90 members strong and will suit up again next week for the Buddy Walk in Cincinnati an effort to support children with Downs Syndrome.
Connor found that he had real friends in many places this week when Tipp City’s MAINSTREET Preschool (the preschool Connor attends) raised $195 in a two week campaign called “Coins for Connor” Overall Connor’s walk team raised over $2,300 to fund research for a cure to Type 1 Diabetes.
The JDRF Walk took place at Island Metro Park in Dayton at 10AM Saturday morning where more than 3,000 local residents gathered to support several hundred children and young adults suffering from Juvenile Diabetes. The event showcased some super entertainment with live music, clowns, Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat (and Thing 1 and Thing 2), facepainting, games and food donated from a dozen fantastic event sponsors.
I am glad that I had the opportunity to not only support my son in this event, but also to be one of the only media outlets to cover the event. You may have noticed no TV coverage of the event, and that even the Dayton Daily News won’t have the story (unless they are able to scrape up a press release). This is one of the many struggles that parents and those affected with juvenile diabetes deal with every day, a serious case of those uninformed of the growing problem that Type 1 Diabetes is having on some of the Miami Valley’s smallest victims.
To learn more about Type 1 Diabetes, you can check out their website at http://jdrf.org , donate to Connor’s Troopers at http://connorstroopers.com or contact me directly to find out more!
Also keep your eyes peeled for next week’s article in the Sunday Record Herald, Tipp City’s newspaper.
