I remember May 23, 2008, like it was yesterday. I was sitting at the lunch table in the 5th grade when the school nurse came over to me and told me to go to her office with her. She calmly told me she needed to run a few tests, including poking my finger to test my blood sugar. I remember seeing the glucose reading being 416, and as the nurse told me to go sit down, I immediately heard her calling my mother at work. Next thing I knew, my mother, as calm as she could, tried her best to calm my nerves, wipe my scared tears, and explain that I’d be okay.
Memorial Day weekend of 2008, I spent the weekend in the hospital learning what type 1 diabetes (T1D) was and how it would affect my life. Throughout that weekend, I quickly learned that I would not be handling this life-altering news alone. My family visited every day, including my two older brothers and my twin brother. I received gifts, phone calls, text messages, etc., and it made me realize that I would not battle every day alone, which was huge for a scared 11-year-old boy.
It did not take my family and me long to find out about Breakthrough T1D (formerly JDRF). We quickly signed up and fundraised for the JDRF Worcester Walk, and “Collin’s Clan” was born. As previously mentioned, my village showed up in full force, and we were one of the top fundraising teams that year. As the years went on, we gathered more and more team members, raised more and more money, all with the hope that one day, there would be a cure.
Ever since I can remember, athletics have been a part of my life. Whether it was a basketball game, soccer game, or playing with my three brothers, my first worry about living with T1D was that I would not be able to play those sports again. Thankfully, that was not the case. Through medical advancements, such as getting on an insulin pump and a continuous glucose monitor (CGM), I was able to play basketball up and down the East Coast and in Europe, as well as play four years of varsity soccer. Years later, after my basketball and soccer years had come and gone, I found my love for running.
In the spring of 2024, I signed up for a 5k. That 5k led to a half-marathon in September, and another in October. Besides running in basketball and soccer, I always hated running. Running anything over a 5k, I thought, was impossible living with T1D. Through lots of highs and lows (in training and in my blood sugar), I learned how to deal with running and manage my blood sugar.
After learning to run long distances and manage my blood sugars, I signed up for the big one: The Chicago Marathon. I was fortunate enough to join the Breakthrough T1D team at the 2025 Bank of America Chicago Marathon this past October. The Breakthrough T1D team was incredible with their guidance, support, and gave me the confidence that I could train and finish the 26.2 miles. Running a marathon was truly something that I thought I would never be able to do, and it was genuinely one of the best days of my life. I am very thankful Breakthrough T1D gave me that opportunity and look forward to future races with them in the future!
-Collin Bennett