During National Volunteer Week, April 19-25, Breakthrough T1D will be honoring our outstanding volunteer partners. We extend a heartfelt thank you to all of you who work tirelessly to advance Breakthrough T1D’s mission. From board, event committees and office volunteers, to advocacy leaders, outreach volunteers and youth ambassadors, we are incredibly grateful for each and every one of you who shares your time, energy and expertise with us. Thank you so much, now and always!
Here are a few volunteers that do exceptional work to help Breakthrough T1D create a world without type one diabetes.
Ride – Karen Nestvold
Karen Nestvold is one of the Breakthrough T1D Greater Northwest Ride to Cure Diabetes coaches. She is truly a fierce cheerleader, advocate, and teammate for the Breakthrough T1D Ride program. Greeting every rider with care and compassion, she meets them where they are at, welcomes them, and gears them up to be fully prepared to excel at their Breakthrough T1D ride. Karen will be joining us this year in Grand Rapids and Tucson for her 15th and 16th Breakthrough T1D Rides. Thank you, Karen for the impact you make in the lives of those living (and biking) with T1D!
Golf – Emma & Steve Murphy
Golf Classic dynamic duo, Emma and Steve Murphy are incredible leaders in the T1D Community! As the 12th Annual Breakthrough T1D Golf Classic Fund A Cure speakers, Emma and Steve shared a story of courage and hope for a cure for T1D. On the rainy September day at Glendale Country Club, they stole the show with an emotional Fund A Cure speech capturing their commitment to Turning Type One into Type None; their inspirational talk capped an evening which raised over $171,000 for T1D research. Thank you, Emma & Steve!
YLC- Ally VanSchoorl and Jeff Richmond
Jeff and Ally serve as Co-Presidents for the Breakthrough T1D Greater Northwest Chapter Young Leadership Committee (YLC). Over the last few years both Ally and Jeff have worked hard to grow the YLC’s membership, educate the greater Seattle community about Breakthrough T1D, and support all Breakthrough T1D fundraising and community programs in addition to the YLC programs and fundraising. Their leadership efforts have brought in thousands of dollars for research, countless volunteer hours, and important community connections. Thank you, Jeff and Ally for your leadership and dedication to Breakthrough T1D and the T1D community!
Gala- Alan Bornstein
Breakthrough T1D volunteers are the heart and soul of our organization. This #NationalVolunteerWeek, we’ll celebrate our volunteers and the power they bring to our shared mission. Today, we shine a light on Alan Bornstein. Alan has been a passionate and dedicated supporter of the Breakthrough T1D Seattle Guild for decades – lending his time and talent to the Dream Gala as Sponsorship Co-Chair. Alan’s commitment to ending #T1D, and the power that volunteers like him bring, is what will drive Breakthrough T1D to the finish line. We want to give a huge shout out to Alan – he keeps us moving forward toward a future without type 1 diabetes. Thank you for your unwavering support and partnership, Alan! #strongertogether #JDRFpower
Outreach- Ardy Johnson
Ardy Johnson has a long history with Breakthrough T1D and the Breakthrough T1D Greater Northwest Chapter as an Outreach Volunteer and community fundraiser. Her passion and commitment to Breakthrough T1D started after her son was diagnosed and since then she has worked tireless to push Breakthrough T1D’s vision of a world without T1D forward. A huge thank you to Ardy to working with our newly diagnosed families, answering questions through the Online Diabetes Support team, and being an incredible resource for our community. Thank you for all that you do to support our T1D families and individuals—because of volunteers like Ardy we are #strongertogether #JDRFpower
Heidi Schmedding – Beat the Bridge
Heidi is a devoted #BeattheBridge participant captaining Team Nater and serving on the Family Team Committee. Team Nater was formed in honor of her son, Nate, who was diagnosed with #type1diabetes at age 9. With her and Nate’s leadership, Team Nater has raised over $128,000 for #BeattheBridge and the #T1D community. Her fundraising impact doesn’t stop there, as part of the Family Team Committee, Heidi volunteers her time to help other team captains stay connected with Breakthrough T1D and become successful fundraisers! Heidi’s dedication to #JDRF’s mission demonstrates how we are #strongertogether thanks to our incredible volunteers! #NationalVolunteerWeek
Kristen Bennett- OneWalk
Kristen and her family have been involved with Breakthrough T1D for many years, working tirelessly to help Breakthrough T1D in both the Inland NW and Montana find a cure for type one diabetes. She got really involved when her son Roland was diagnosed with T1D at 11 months. Kristen is now the Fundraising Chair of the Montana Breakthrough T1D One Walk, leading teams to make this event a huge success! In addition to her amazing fundraising for Roaring Rolands and helping put on the Montana One Walk, Kristen is also T1D and represented Montana along with Roland at Children’s Congress in Washington DC. We can’t say thank you enough to Kristen for the incredible impact she is making in the Inland NW and Montana T1D community!
Interested in supporting Breakthrough T1D as a volunteer? Join Breakthrough T1D by filling out a volunteer interest form.