Arianna Gehan speaking at the JDRF 2019 Children’s Congress

Arianna Gehan didn’t want to think about type 1 diabetes (T1D) any more than she had to after her diagnosis at age 11.

“It took about a year before my mom convinced me just to attend a JDRF One Walk,” she said.

That event introduced her to JDRF, and she immediately felt a connection with others who were facing similar challenges. It inspired her to get more involved, including a role as a Youth Advocacy Leader.

“Volunteering with JDRF makes me more comfortable with living with the disease while also giving me the confidence to fight for what I believe in,” she said.

A Sense of Belonging

Arianna was a Delegate for the JDRF 2019 Children’s Congress. At first, she was nervous about meeting with Congressional Representatives, but JDRF’s support network gave her the confidence to speak passionately about living with T1D. That confidence has stuck with her to this day.

“It’s hard to underscore how incredible it was to meet with the Representatives and their teams,” Arianna recalled. “To have the Congressional offices really listen and take an interest in our stories was an impactful and validating experience.”

Being surrounded by hundreds of other kids with T1D reinforced the sense of belonging she experienced at One Walk. It also put into perspective just how many people are working together to improve the lives of people with T1D, from JDRF to politicians to celebrities.

“Whenever I get frustrated about living with this disease, it comforts me to know I am not alone in the fight and that if we keep working together, we will continue to bring on beneficial change,” she said.

An Opportunity to Educate

Since 1999, the JDRF Children’s Congress has invited youth with T1D to Washington, D.C., to meet with Members of Congress and other policymakers to educate them about what it’s like to live with T1D and to explain why Federal support for research and affordable access to a range of T1D management tools are so critical.

“Children’s Congress gives a face to T1D,” said Elena Purdy, Senior Manager of JDRF Grassroots Advocacy. “It helps our national decision-makers better understand the disease’s financial, medical, and emotional costs, and what they can do about it.”

JDRF 2023 Children’s Congress Delegates will focus on several advocacy initiatives:

1. Creating significant support within Congress for a renewal of the Special Diabetes Program (SDP), which currently provides $150 million/year for T1D research through the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
2. Engaging the FDA to ensure regulatory policies provide optimized pathways for approval of T1D therapies and devices. 
3. Ensuring T1D screening and monitoring is more widely accepted in the U.S. healthcare system.
4. Accelerating progress towards more affordable insulin.

Being a JDRF 2019 Children’s Congress Delegate was life-changing for Arianna. “I guarantee that the experience and the people you meet make it all worth it, and I would truly encourage everyone to apply,” she said.

A Bright Future in the Health Sciences

Today, Arianna studies biomedical engineering at Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, NJ. “I knew from a young age I wanted to be an engineer because I liked math and science,” she said. “Getting diagnosed with T1D helped me find my passion for health care.”

She’s exploring both research and industry career paths in her field. Arianna is also very interested in technology—she’s currently coding an app to connect blood sugar data with sleep data to improve nighttime notifications. She hopes to create a company around it!

A T1D-focused career never would have crossed Arianna’s mind if it weren’t for the JDRF 2019 Children’s Congress. “Being surrounded by so many people who were passionate about improving lives really inspired me to pursue a field in health care and, more specifically, type 1 diabetes,” she said.

JDRF 2023 Children’s Congress Delegates will be announced in March 2023.