Brighton Family Will Walk to Cure Diabetes

Sheila Andring, of Brighton, is no stranger to Diabetes - both of her sons were diagnosed with the disease at very young ages.

Just two weeks before Austin's second birthday in 2006, he went to the emergency room and found out that he has Type 1 (Juvenile) diabetes. Cody was diagnosed with the same disease last year 2011 at 4-years-old. Today the boys are 7 and 5, attend Spencer Elementary and are insulin dependent for the rest of their lives.

Lives that are filled with things like testing blood sugar, counting carbohydrates and operating pumps worn throughout the day - not the type of things normal boys their age have to worry about.

That's why the Andring family, along with other family members and friends, will participate in the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) Walk to Cure Diabetes on Sunday at Hudson Mills Metropark, just as they have for the past five years.

"Insulin is not a cure and the only way we're going to find one is by raising funds to do the research," Andring said.

According to JDRF, about 80 people a day are diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes and about half of them are children.

The Andring's team, aptly named "Double Trouble," raised $3,050 for the walk last year. They've already topped that this year - as of Wednesday night, the team has raised $4,069.49

Last year, the Hudson Mills Walk raised $706,252 and welcomed approximately 2,500 people, according to Rita Combest, Associate Executive Director of the JDRF Metro Detroit & Southeast Michigan Chapter.

Andring said the event is something that is looked forward to every year.

"They (Austin and Cody) ask me several times during the year when the walk is," she said. "They have a lot of fun."

For more information about the walk, visit walk.jdrf.org