Getting down to business...building a promise
Tom Glass
Even though the PRMC campaign officially began only two weeks ago, the momentum for the program has been building quickly! At least 25 legislator meetings have already been scheduled, quickly moving us in the right direction towards our goal of 400 legislator meetings by May of 2008.
On July 23, I joined my family and several other families from the Minneapolis, MN area to meet with Congressman Ramstad in the first Promise to Remember Me Meeting of the 2007-08 campaign. Our meeting was a gratifying experience that reassured us that our voices were a valuable tool for achieving the “promise” that we set out to confirm.
During the past 10 years, I have had many discussions with Congressman Ramstad as a JDRF volunteer, his constituent, and even as a friend. Every legislator is a stakeholder in the search for a cure to type 1 diabetes, and as I discovered through our numerous dialogues, Congressman Ramstad had a very personal reason for fighting this disease. The Congressman's cousin, Joey Ramstad, died from type 1 diabetes when he was very young, and this experience inspired him to promise as a legislator “to fight for every penny to fund research for a cure”. By sharing our stories with one another, Congressman Ramstad and I have developed an invaluable personal relationship that is bonded together by our common goal of finding a cure for diabetes. Like a close friend, he has watched my son grow into a productive young adult, and has become a dedicated advocate for type 1 diabetes.
There are many other legislators, like Congressman Ramstad, who share our common connection to type 1 diabetes, and many more that can be compelled to share in our vision through the power of our stories. The PRMC is an opportunity for you to build and strengthen the relationship you have with your legislator. We must continue to build the promise, and as Congressman Ramstad eloquently summarized during our July 23 PRMC meeting, we must do this because “the children gathered today and all children with diabetes are too precious a resource to risk losing to [a disease] like diabetes.”
From Chapter Fundraising Drive to Congressional “Promise” Drive: Supporting the Public-Private Partnership to Cure Diabetes
Lorraine
Stiehl
$110 Million: JDRF Fundraising in 2005
$433 Million Government Funding in 2005
Like many of you, my first experiences with JDRF included raising money through walks, organizing galas and other special events, and soliciting donations to support research. As I became more involved in the organization and served as the chapter executive director in both Detroit and Los Angeles, I realized that JDRF's chapter activities were just the first half of an important “public-private” partnership.
Although our volunteers, staff and supporters are the lifeblood of JDRF, it is through the relationships fostered with the U.S. Congress that we have been successful in creating the infrastructure to fuel critically important diabetes research. With the financial support of the federal government and federally funded institutions such as the National Institutes of Health, JDRF has been able to multiply the money it raises from individuals, foundations, and corporations into investments that would not have been possible without this partnership.
That is why the Promise to Remember Me Campaign is so vitally important. It is an opportunity for advocates who care about type 1 diabetes to translate their traditional fundraising skills into persuasive voices that can help secure important relationships, promises, and votes for JDRF.
I'm excited there is great momentum for this year's Promise to Remember Me Campaign -- even before the effort officially launched on August 1st. I'm pleased that my own U.S. Congresswoman Susan Davis of San Diego met with us on August 8th. I wish you great success in setting up your own meetings with your legislators, hopefully in August or in the early fall. Please do not hesitate to reach out to the Washington DC JDRF Office if we can be of any assistance to you.
My Promise Co-Chairs and I look forward to working with you and everyone else in the JDRF Family to ensure that our legislators do “promise to remember”. Again, thanks for your support!