{"id":10072,"date":"2026-03-25T16:17:07","date_gmt":"2026-03-25T16:17:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/?post_type=jdrf_event&p=10072"},"modified":"2026-04-16T13:23:27","modified_gmt":"2026-04-16T13:23:27","slug":"vecchio","status":"publish","type":"jdrf_event","link":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/events\/vecchio\/","title":{"rendered":"Fund A Cure with Marlena Vecchio | Breakthrough T1D Syracuse Gala 2026"},"author":846,"featured_media":10094,"template":"","event-categories":[1061],"class_list":["post-10072","jdrf_event","type-jdrf_event","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","jdrf_event_category-other"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nFund A Cure with Marlena Vecchio | Breakthrough T1D Syracuse Gala 2026 - Western and Central New York Chapter<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/events\/vecchio\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Fund A Cure with Marlena Vecchio | Breakthrough T1D Syracuse Gala 2026 - Western and Central New York Chapter\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Our story starts like so many others I\u2019ve come to know since joining the T1D community. \u00a0Something feels off, you schedule a doctor\u2019s appointment, and suddenly, you\u2019re in the hospital and leaving with a life that looks completely different than it did just days before. We were on a week\u2011long vacation at a national dance competition when Marlena began showing subtle signs that something wasn\u2019t right: fatigue, slight weight loss (despite a four\u2011inch growth spurt between April and June), and an insatiable craving for chocolate milk and pasta. She pushed through that entire competition like the warrior she is, but on the drive home, I called her pediatrician, as something just wasn't quite right. We went to the doctor the following day and after long discussions and testing, we found the culprit.\u00a0 Her blood sugar was 449.\u00a0 I will never forget the NP looking at me and saying, "I am so sorry, this is never news I want to give, but I think Marlena may have Type 1 Diabetes and these may be signs she is in DKA." After a brief moment of tears, we got in the car and headed straight to Golisano. Thanks to the incredible physicians there (and the unwavering persistence and advocacy from my cousins Matt and Hannah), what I feared was confirmed. \u00a0Marlena had Type 1 Diabetes, and she was in DKA.\u00a0 In the days that followed, I went from knowing nothing about T1D to being able to write a book.\u00a0 Our lives became focused on carb counting, BS math, highs, lows, and every emotion in between. While those early days were traumatic and overwhelming, Marlena shined.\u00a0 She has met this diagnosis with grit, grace, and a strength far beyond her years.\u00a0 She hasn\u2019t let T1D slow her down in any way; she is a fierce competitive dancer; owns her Omnipod and Dexcom changes like a champ, and she absolutely dominates on the soccer field (even if that includes a couple of mid\u2011game pump tosses in the field along the way!)\u00a0 Watching my daughter not just survive, but thrive, fills me with an emotion I can barely put into words. This is why I am diving head\u2011first into doing everything I can to help find a cure and to support the technology and research that gives my little heart the best possible chance of success as she navigates life with T1D. I hope you\u2019ll consider joining me on this journey by making a 100% tax\u2011deductible donation in Marlena\u2019s name to Breakthrough T1D. Your support fuels critical research, accelerates life\u2011changing advancements, and helps move us closer to a world without Type 1 Diabetes. Breakthrough T1D\u2019s core mission is to drive urgently needed scientific breakthroughs while supporting families like ours who are living this reality every single day. Thank you for being part of our story and for helping write a future filled with hope.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/events\/vecchio\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Western and Central New York Chapter\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/breakthrought1dHQ\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-16T13:23:27+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/159\/2026\/03\/Dance-Omnipod.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"640\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"427\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@breakthrought1d\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/events\\\/vecchio\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/events\\\/vecchio\\\/\",\"name\":\"Fund A Cure with Marlena Vecchio | Breakthrough T1D Syracuse Gala 2026 - Western and Central New York Chapter\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/events\\\/vecchio\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/events\\\/vecchio\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/159\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/Dance-Omnipod.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-03-25T16:17:07+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-16T13:23:27+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/events\\\/vecchio\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/events\\\/vecchio\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/events\\\/vecchio\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/159\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/Dance-Omnipod.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/159\\\/2026\\\/03\\\/Dance-Omnipod.jpg\",\"width\":640,\"height\":427},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/events\\\/vecchio\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Events\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/discover-events\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"Other Special Event\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/events\\\/other\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":4,\"name\":\"Fund A Cure with Marlena Vecchio | Breakthrough T1D Syracuse Gala 2026\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/\",\"name\":\"Western and Central New York Chapter\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Breakthrough T1D\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/06\\\/BT1D-favi.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/06\\\/BT1D-favi.png\",\"width\":400,\"height\":400,\"caption\":\"Breakthrough T1D\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.breakthrought1d.org\\\/westerncentralny\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/breakthrought1dHQ\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/breakthrought1d\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.youtube.com\\\/@breakthrought1d\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/breakthrought1d\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tiktok.com\\\/@breakthrought1dhq\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Fund A Cure with Marlena Vecchio | Breakthrough T1D Syracuse Gala 2026 - Western and Central New York Chapter","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/events\/vecchio\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Fund A Cure with Marlena Vecchio | Breakthrough T1D Syracuse Gala 2026 - Western and Central New York Chapter","og_description":"Our story starts like so many others I\u2019ve come to know since joining the T1D community. \u00a0Something feels off, you schedule a doctor\u2019s appointment, and suddenly, you\u2019re in the hospital and leaving with a life that looks completely different than it did just days before. We were on a week\u2011long vacation at a national dance competition when Marlena began showing subtle signs that something wasn\u2019t right: fatigue, slight weight loss (despite a four\u2011inch growth spurt between April and June), and an insatiable craving for chocolate milk and pasta. She pushed through that entire competition like the warrior she is, but on the drive home, I called her pediatrician, as something just wasn't quite right. We went to the doctor the following day and after long discussions and testing, we found the culprit.\u00a0 Her blood sugar was 449.\u00a0 I will never forget the NP looking at me and saying, \"I am so sorry, this is never news I want to give, but I think Marlena may have Type 1 Diabetes and these may be signs she is in DKA.\" After a brief moment of tears, we got in the car and headed straight to Golisano. Thanks to the incredible physicians there (and the unwavering persistence and advocacy from my cousins Matt and Hannah), what I feared was confirmed. \u00a0Marlena had Type 1 Diabetes, and she was in DKA.\u00a0 In the days that followed, I went from knowing nothing about T1D to being able to write a book.\u00a0 Our lives became focused on carb counting, BS math, highs, lows, and every emotion in between. While those early days were traumatic and overwhelming, Marlena shined.\u00a0 She has met this diagnosis with grit, grace, and a strength far beyond her years.\u00a0 She hasn\u2019t let T1D slow her down in any way; she is a fierce competitive dancer; owns her Omnipod and Dexcom changes like a champ, and she absolutely dominates on the soccer field (even if that includes a couple of mid\u2011game pump tosses in the field along the way!)\u00a0 Watching my daughter not just survive, but thrive, fills me with an emotion I can barely put into words. This is why I am diving head\u2011first into doing everything I can to help find a cure and to support the technology and research that gives my little heart the best possible chance of success as she navigates life with T1D. I hope you\u2019ll consider joining me on this journey by making a 100% tax\u2011deductible donation in Marlena\u2019s name to Breakthrough T1D. Your support fuels critical research, accelerates life\u2011changing advancements, and helps move us closer to a world without Type 1 Diabetes. Breakthrough T1D\u2019s core mission is to drive urgently needed scientific breakthroughs while supporting families like ours who are living this reality every single day. Thank you for being part of our story and for helping write a future filled with hope.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/events\/vecchio\/","og_site_name":"Western and Central New York Chapter","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/breakthrought1dHQ","article_modified_time":"2026-04-16T13:23:27+00:00","og_image":[{"width":640,"height":427,"url":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/159\/2026\/03\/Dance-Omnipod.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_site":"@breakthrought1d","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"1 minute"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/events\/vecchio\/","url":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/events\/vecchio\/","name":"Fund A Cure with Marlena Vecchio | Breakthrough T1D Syracuse Gala 2026 - Western and Central New York Chapter","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/events\/vecchio\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/events\/vecchio\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/159\/2026\/03\/Dance-Omnipod.jpg","datePublished":"2026-03-25T16:17:07+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-16T13:23:27+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/events\/vecchio\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/events\/vecchio\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/events\/vecchio\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/159\/2026\/03\/Dance-Omnipod.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/159\/2026\/03\/Dance-Omnipod.jpg","width":640,"height":427},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/events\/vecchio\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Events","item":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/discover-events\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Other Special Event","item":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/events\/other\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"name":"Fund A Cure with Marlena Vecchio | Breakthrough T1D Syracuse Gala 2026"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/","name":"Western and Central New York Chapter","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/#organization","name":"Breakthrough T1D","url":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/BT1D-favi.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/BT1D-favi.png","width":400,"height":400,"caption":"Breakthrough T1D"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/breakthrought1dHQ","https:\/\/x.com\/breakthrought1d","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@breakthrought1d","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/breakthrought1d\/","https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@breakthrought1dhq"]}]}},"virtual_event":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/events\/10072","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/events"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/jdrf_event"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/846"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10094"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10072"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"jdrf_event_category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.breakthrought1d.org\/westerncentralny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/event-categories?post=10072"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}