By: Charlie Lawrence, co-founder of Ulster County JDF (1975) , Ride to Cure Diabetes participant and new coach.

On January 30, 2016,  a group of riders – new and experienced – from the Fairfield/Westchester/HudsonValley Chapter gathered at the home of ride coach Joe Devita to kickoff the 2016 Ride to Cure Diabetes Season.

We had a chance to introduce ourselves to each other and to bond as one in preparation for our cycling journey to turn Type One into Type None.

As each of us shared our reason for being there, for riding, for being involved – each of us surely recognized our common bond and common enemy; diabetes.

For me, it was an awesome experience to not only meet other riders from our chapter but also to meet the son of a lady who visited my house some 40 plus years ago to accept a donation. That day – that lady – Carol Lurie – recruited my wife Donna and me to form an Ulster County chapter of an organization that was then known simply as JDF. Little did we know that our connection with and opportunity to be inspired by Carol Lurie would lead to the creation of chapters throughout the Hudson Valley. Those chapters evolved and merged overtime to become our current chapter of JDRF.

If anyone is interested in learning more about “The Ride”, please contact Jill Waller at 914-686-7700 and ask to be connected with a coach or rider in your area. We will gladly help you learn about this powerful tool for fighting diabetes. Of course for starters, you can also go to ride.jdrf.org to read rider testimonials.

Here’s my testimonial:

“The Ride makes me laugh, cry and gives me a way to fight T1D while making friends with riders from over the country. This is my extended family.”

And on this past Saturday, my extended JDRF family was reunited… when I got to meet Carol’s son Stephen who has joined our ranks as a Ride to Cure Diabetes participant. As Stephen and I stood shoulder to shoulder – we thought and said – surely Carol is looking down on us with a smile. The passion of her legacy is coursing through the veins of our chapter’s Ride to Cure Diabetes participants.

We will ride until Type ONE is Type NONE