Make It Matter: The Power Of Three

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Make It Matter

P H O T O G R A P H E D B Y R U D Y A R C H U L E TA / R E D U X

The Power of Three They’re helping diabetics, teaching sports to the disabled, and showing ex-cons a new way to live

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hristopher Thomas was an aspiring writer by night and a corporate trainer at JPMorgan Chase by day when he noticed he was always tired, frequently needed to urinate, and was losing weight fast—40 pounds in just four months. Tests showed that his pancreas wasn’t producing

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insulin and that his blood sugar was six times higher than normal. Diagnosed with type 1 diabetes, Thomas, 27, would need to inject himself with insulin three times a day for the rest of his life or risk kidney failure, blindness, nerve damage, amputations, and even death. And if that weren’t bad

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Fun on the Slopes Richard Reisner had been going to Vermont for years to ski, so it was no surprise that he relocated there after retiring. But the former chief financial officer for a medical devices company couldn’t just sit still. When a neighbor invited him to lend a hand at Vermont Adaptive Ski & 16

online children’s forums together most evenings. “Kody gets so excited, writing to kids from all over,” says Swencki, 36, who has become one of the site’s volunteer administrators. “They know what he’s going through, so he doesn’t feel alone.” Kody is anything but alone: Diabetes is now the seventh leading cause of death in the United States, with 24 million diagnosed cases. And more people are being diagnosed at younger ages. These days, Thomas’s main focus is his charity, Fight It, which provides medications and supplies to people— 225 to date—who can’t afford a dia-

Sports, a nonprofit dedicated to teaching sports to people of all ages with disabilities—including cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, and Down syndrome—he decided to check it out. That was seven years ago, and Reisner has been actively involved ever since. He volunteers as a ski coach and guide for the disabled, especially the blind; he has also served as the board’s president and chairs the finance committee. And he’s a coach for a Special Olympics ski team. “He’s a great guy with a great attitude,” says fellow volunteer Tim

Robson, “and the students love him.” Reisner, 65, faced his own challenge six years ago when he was diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia. He undergoes treatment regularly, but he hasn’t let it interfere with his commitment to the kids at Vermont Adaptive (vermontadaptive.org). “I love coaching,” says Reisner. “It’s fun to see these kids improve every year. This experience helps them emotionally and lifts their spirits. They begin to think, I can do something I didn’t know I could do.” Kathryn M. Tyransk i

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COURTESY RICHARD REISNER

enough, he had no health insurance. After a month of feeling sucker punched, Thomas decided he’d better find a way to fight back. He packed up his car and left Canton, Michigan, for New York. He found a sublet, got a job waiting tables, nicknamed himself the Diabetic Rockstar, and created diabeticrockstar.com, a free online community for diabetics and their loved ones—a place where over 1,100 people share personal stories, information, and resources. Jason Swencki is a software developer whose son, Kody, was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at age six. Father and son visit the

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betic’s considerable expenses ($4,174 per year on average). “There’s the father of three whose oldest daughter is diabetic. He works two jobs to pay for testing strips, and he’s having trouble putting food on the table,” Thomas says. “Because of testing strips? C’mon, that’s not right.” Fight-it.org has raised about $23,000—in products (through partnerships with companies like American Diabetes Wholesale and 77 Canada Pharmacy) and in cash (through individual donations and proceeds from Fight It/Rockstar clothing, wristbands, and rock concerts). In May, Thomas will hold the first annual Diabetic

Second Chances Juanita Edrington-Grant knows a little faith can go a long way. She is the CEO and founder of Christian Recovery Aftercare Ministry (craminc.org), a nonprofit in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, that helps prisoners, ex-offenders, and former drug addicts prepare for life after prison.

Rockstar Carnival cruise in the Caribbean. Even with a staff of 22 volunteers, Thomas often devotes up to 50 hours a week to his cause, while still holding down his full-time job waiting tables. “Of the diabetes charities out there, most are putting money into finding a cure,” says Bentley Gubar, 48, one of Rockstar’s original members, who also has type 1 diabetes. “But Chris is the only person I know saying people Sarah Saffian need help now.” Tell us how you or someone you know is making it matter, and your story may appear here. Go to readersdigest.com/ makeitmatter.

Once an addict herself, Edrington-Grant spent seven years in prison for drug-related crimes. Today, at 55, she helps people learn the skills they need to remake their lives— how to find a job, follow a budget, use a computer. “Even though you’ve made a mistake or two,” she tells them, “you can still bounce back.” By teaching them to lead a more positive lifestyle, she says, “we are also helping to build a safer community.” One of the recovery groups at the Harrisburg Community Corrections Center works with the first chapter of Rick

Warren’s The Purpose Driven Life. “The name of that chapter,” says Edrington-Grant, “is ‘What on Earth Am I Here For?’ It helps prisoners understand that just because they’re incarcerated, it doesn’t mean that’s their destiny. “There’s nothing I can do about my past,” says Edrington-Grant, a paralegal who is studying for her PhD in religious education. “It is what it is. But suppose someone had given up on me? I want these men and women to discover their purpose in life.” Lauren J. Gniazdowski

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