Dena Gauthier

Clifton Park, New York

Although I do not have diabetes, I still live with it every day. In fact, I possess the only functioning pancreas in my house!

My husband and our 2 daughters (ages 8 & 12) all have type 1 diabetes. They all wear insulin pumps and manage their disease though glucose monitoring and carb counting.

Diabetes places huge demands on the families that it affects. The physical, mental and financial strains of diabetes are something you can't imagine unless you live it.

My husband, age 43, had a heart attack in July 2009 due to complications of diabetes. He eats right, exercises, takes great care of himself, but having diabetes for 32 will take a toll on the body. I realized while sitting in ICU with him that diabetes could not only change a life, but it can end one too. It was a frightening reality to face.

His future and our children’s futures could be in jeopardy if a cure isn’t found. We raise money each year with family and friends to fund diabetes research. This year we have more motivation than ever to help find a cure.

I want to stop diabetes more than anything because I never, ever want it to stop my family.