health & wellness
Bloody Fingers
Three friends with juvenile diabetes
work hard to raise money through walk.
,
-
-
It may be beautiful on the
outside but it's what's on th
inside that counts
Bloody Fingers teammates: Hannah Knoll, Sammy Schlussel
and Claire Schlussel.
T
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44 September 26 • 2013
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heir team name, Bloody
Fingers, was created by
Claire Schlussel, 15, Sam
Schlussel, 10, and Hannah Knoll, 12,
all kids living with type 1 diabetes, or
juvenile diabetes. While it may sound
a bit morbid, the unfortunate reality is
that this is their world. Their day-to-
day lives involve checking their blood
glucose level by pricking their fingers
multiple times.
All three kids, who live in
Huntington Woods, have worked tire-
lessly not only to get more people to
walk in the Juvenile Diabetes Research
Foundation Walk to Cure Diabetes at
9:30 a.m. Sunday, Sept. 29, at the GM
Tech Center in Warren, but also to col-
lect money. JDRF is the leading global
organization funding type 1 diabetes
(T1D) research; 80 percent of the
money raised through the walk goes
directly back to the JDRF and efforts
to find a cure.
"No stone will go unturned as they,
along with their families and friends,
educate as many people as possible
about type 1 diabetes, which includes
the fact there is a light at the end of
their tunnel: says Lisa Knoll, Hannah's
mom.
"A cure will happen in their life-
time she says. "But until that day
comes, we will all work endlessly to
do whatever we need to do. Spend a
day with one of these kids. They are
all wonderful, kind kids. Diabetes has
created a huge obstacle and burden for
them all. Yet, do you hear any of them
complain? Rarely. They just want to be
kids:'
Cara and Ira Schlussel, parents of
Claire and Sam, say, "We walk to show
our kids how much we love and sup-
port them:'
These kids, along with almost
15,000 more newly diagnosed each
year plus the nearly 3 million kids who
already have T1D, are true heroes,
Knoll says.
"I walk because I want them to find
a cure says Hannah, who was diag-
nosed at age 11. "I walk because I want
to be normal again:'
Claire, diagnosed at age 13, says,
"I walk to raise awareness and to let
people know that Type 1 Diabetes is
not Type 2 diabetes:'
Sam, diagnosed at age 6, says sim-
ply, "I walk to find a cure:'
❑
Registration for the 3-mile walk begins at
8:30 a.m. at the GM Tech Center, 30001
Van Dyke in Warren. For information, con-
tact Krystal Dunlap at JDRF in Southfield,
(248) 936-1282 or kdunlap@jdrforg. To
donate to team Bloody Fingers, go to
http://bit.IW16ei8ww.