Our Hudson Valley quarterly Meet & Greets are a great way to learn about JDRF, what we do here in the Westchester/Fairfield/Hudson Valley Chapter and connect with other families. Whether you are new to type 1 diabetes (T1D) or have been living with it for some time, getting involved with JDRF is an excellent way to keep up on research and join our efforts to turn type one into type none.

The first Meet & Greet of the year is scheduled for Tuesday, January 26, 6:30 pm at the Galleria Mall, 2001 South Road, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601. The group meets in the Community Room located on the 2nd floor near the food court.

Our last Meet & Greet of 2015 was held during National Diabetes Awareness Month – the perfect time to thank our dedicated families, donors and sponsors for their role in helping us achieve our One Walk success.

Attendees of the November 3rd Meet & Greet learned how our small Hudson Valley walk plays a big role in helping JDRF achieve its national goal of raising $50.5 million for research through this one fundraising program.  Every team, every participant, every sponsor and every donor is crucial to our success and we took a moment to celebrate each of them.

Team Sweet Madeline, Team Sophia and Connor’s Crew led the way this year, collectively raising more than 30% of our overall goal!  Their dedication was evident in the sea of supporters that joined them on our rainy walk day – but they weren’t alone.  Fifty one teams made up the Hudson Valley Walk and 21 of those teams raised more than $1,000 each, including longtime sponsors Orange Regional Medical Center and Marshall & Sterling Insurance.  Our Meet & Greet gave us the chance to celebrate each of them and a chance to welcome the 20 new teams that joined our ranks this year.

Also on-hand was longtime volunteer, Tom McManus, who shared how our fundraising dollars are being put to work.  Tom’s breadth of knowledge and ability to share research breakthroughs in layman’s terms was a welcome addition to this Meet & Greet and offered inspiration to everyone in attendance.

Thank you to Tom, our families, teams, sponsors and donors for all that you do for JDRF.  And a special thank you to our 2015 One Walk Planning Committee.  Without your commitment to our mission, our work would not be possible.