Happy Holidays from all of us at the Breakthrough T1D Southern California and Hawai’i! Sending you wishes of comfort and joy, from this year to the next.
Breakthrough T1D Walk
We are beyond grateful for our incredible Orange County community for another memorable Breakthrough T1D Walk! Despite the rain, you showed up in full force, and we had the joy of spending the day with so many wonderful families, friends, and supporters. Together, we’ve already raised over $554,000 for T1D research! A heartfelt thank you to our dedicated Walk Committee and our Walk Chair, Mark Oshima, for helping bring this meaningful day to life. Your passion, hard work, and commitment to creating breakthroughs for the T1D community made this year’s Walk truly unforgettable. We are so close to our goal of $588,000 and fundraising pages are still open. Let’s keep the momentum from Walk Day going!
A huge thank you to our sponsors:
- Activities Zone Sponsor: Bandai Namco Foundation of America
- Brighter Future Sponsors: Breakthrough T1D Greater Orange County Board of Directors, Haskell & White, Hoag – Mary & Dick Allen Diabetes Center, Kingston Technology, Positive Beverage, and Willow Labs
- Resource Row Vendors: Good Journey Donuts, Medtronic, Omnipod, T1D Oral Health Foundation, and Twiist.
Thank you for being such an important part of this movement!
As we wrap up 2025, remember that Walk fundraising is still open! Whether you’re close to your goal or striving to earn the $500 V1P Club or $1,000 V1P Champion incentives, you still have time. Year-End Giving is the ideal moment to elevate your fundraising and hit that next milestone. Donation pages will remain open into January, 2026, but V1P rewards must be earned and redeemed by December 31st.
Gala
We are thrilled to share that, under the leadership of Co-Chairs Nancy Mienik, Claire Squier, and Mara Wilkie, the 2026 Beyond A Dream Gala will take place at the beautiful Balboa Bay Resort on Saturday, March 14th!
We’re actively securing sponsors with a commitment deadline of January 16, 2026. We invite you to join us! Only commitments are needed now; contributions can be fulfilled later. To review sponsorship opportunities, you can view our sponsorship packet here.
For more information, or to purchase tickets please visit our website here. If you are interested in joining our gala committee, have any questions regarding the event, or would like to secure a sponsorship, please reach out to Development Manager, Alex Hines.
Golf
Save the Date for our Fore the Kids Golf Classic to be held on Monday June 15th, 2026 at Monarch Beach Golf Links. To get more information or to join the event committee please contact Lauren Christ.
Endurance
Run
Big thanks to Breakthrough T1D Southern California Run participants!
December Runner Spotlight: Angel Rumbaoa | New York City Marathon
Angel runs and fundraises on behalf of his friends who live with T1D. In November, he raised $7,900 and successfully completed the New York City Marathon.
“Running began as a way to improve my health. Now, it’s a passion that keeps me grounded, driven, and always chasing the next goal.”
Ride
Thank you to everyone who participated in Breakthrough T1D Ride in 2025! We are so grateful to each and every one of you for your tremendous dedication and support. Ride locations for 2026 have been announced and can be viewed here, so save the date to join us in 2026!
For questions or more information about Breakthrough T1D Endurance opportunities, contact Judy Parra.
Community Engagement
The Breakthrough T1D Community Summit is an educational and networking opportunity for all those impacted by type 1 diabetes (T1D). It will bring our community together to learn from T1D experts, hear about the latest breakthroughs in T1D research, meet vendor exhibitors, connect with others impacted by T1D, and more. We look forward to having you join us at the Orange County Community Summit in April 2026. More details coming soon!
As we look ahead to the New Year, we’re forming Community Engagement Committees across several regions. If you’re passionate about bringing people together, supporting event planning, or helping strengthen our healthcare partnerships, we’d be thrilled to have you involved! If you are interested in joining us, please contact Catrina Cooper
Upcoming Chapter Events
In Person Events
- Winter Coffee Chat – Saturday, December 20, 8:30am-10am, at The Press Espresso in Temecula (29601 Old Town Front St). Warm up with us at a sweet spot to connect, share, and support one another in the T1D community. Please RSVP here.
- Breakfast With Rufus, Orange County – Saturday, February 21, 2026, 10am at the Mary & Dick Allen Diabetes Center. Come have breakfast with your local T1D community and our favorite bear with diabetes, Rufus! Don’t forget to bring your own Rufus or special friend. With questions or to RSVP, contact Catrina Cooper.
Virtual Events
- Virtual Community Summit – Breakthrough T1D’s Community Summits offer virtual educational sessions four times a year, to help you and your loved ones live well with type 1 diabetes (T1D). Register here.
- E-Meet & Greets: Monthly Zoom Meetups – Rotating Wednesdays, 12pm.
- Reunión Virtual Para Adultos y Familias con Diabetes Tipo 1 en Español – Aprende más aquí.
- T1D Teen Connect Monthly Meetup – Third Wednesdays, 5-6pm. Register here.
- Ask the Therapist Monthly – Fourth Tuesdays, 12pm-1pm. Register here.
- Newly Diagnosed Ask the Endocrinologist – Third Wednesdays, 8-9am. Register here.
- T1D Dads Barbershop Talk – Every 3 months on the 2nd Friday of the month, 12-1pm. Register here.
- T1D Partner Support Group – Last Tuesday, every 3 months, 6-7pm. Register here.