When Elizabeth’s five year old daughter Lucy, was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes (T1D), life as she knew it was turned upside down.  It seemed as though her family had entered a foreign land.  It was a land of daily finger pricks and insulin injections, but it would also become a place where hope shined bright and faith grew deep.

“I distinctly remember meeting our JDRF mentor family in the hospital.   Despite all the wonderful things that the doctors and nurses were doing for us, seeing that other mom, hugging her, and knowing that she was the only one who knew exactly what I was going through meant the world to me.  It was probably the most important thing that happened for me, personally, in those first few weeks.”

Eighteen months later the Maxon family had already jumped into helping the cause by contributing donations for the JDRF Gala and hosting a JDRF One Walk Team.  But Elizabeth wanted to become more engaged and give back to the JDRF community.  She has always been a writer and felt like if she “stayed in her lane” of what she knew, she could hopefully engage others.  From day one of Lucy’s diagnosis Elizabeth had processed their family’s journey by writing.  She published some of that writing on her blog and realized that it resonated both with T1D families and others.

The success of the blog posts, encouraged Elizabeth to continue the conversation by creating an e-book, entitled Type ONEderland, released earlier this month with 50% of the proceeds benefitting JDRF.  Type ONEderland is the true story of one family’s journey through the disappointment and suffering of chronic illness. It is the story of the surprising discoveries made in the most unexpected places.

“The chapters of this book will shine light into dark places for every reader. The honest words of a desperate mother will inspire change in your own life and offer practical ways to move from surviving to thriving in the midst of struggle.”

To bring you closer to this dynamic and inspiring woman, we invite you to join JDRF, March 5^th at Le Meridien for our chapter’s first ever women’s conference, during which Elizabeth will offer tips as to how you can contribute something to the T1D conversation by sharing your story and finding hope in the middle of grief and disappointment.  We encourage ALL women young or old, living with T1D or perhaps a parent, grandparent or caregiver of a child living with T1D to attend this “1 of a kind” conference.  Stay tuned for more details coming in January.

You can read Elizabeth’s words and learn more about her book by visiting her blog http://www.mywordsandwonder.com

You can also read a sample of the book and sign up to receive some fun freebies on her book site.