RAISING MONEY FOR DIABETES RESEARCH—The Oldt family—parents Gretchen and Jeff with daughters Kamille, 18 months, and Makenzie, 3—take part in Sunday’s 2011 Junior Diabetes Research Foundation’s Walk to Cure Diabetes at Dodger Stadium. Makenzie was diagnosed with diabetes before her first birthday. She attends Ascension Lutheran Preschool in Thousand Oaks. She may be tiny, but 3-yearold Makenzie Oldt is already a big force for the cause of juvenile diabetes research.
This past weekend, the little girl with long blond locks led her family and other Team Makenzie supporters around Dodger Stadium for the 2011 Junior Diabetes Research Foundation’s Walk to Cure Diabetes. Pop singer and actor Nick Jonas, who was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in 2005 when he was 16, walked alongside thousands of people at the annual 5K walk which takes place in cities around the country.
CARING FRIENDS— Members of Team Makenzie, a group of about 30 people who support the Oldt family, head into Dodger Stadium on Sunday to attend the walk. Despite her condition, Makenzie is an upbeat child. “She handles it very well,” her mom says. The national fundraiser was expected to raise $89 million this year for diabetes research.
Last Sunday’s event marked the third time Makenzie, who was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when she was 11 months old, was named “team captain,” but it was the first time she’s been able to grasp its meaning, said her mother, Gretchen Oldt.
She and her husband, Jeff, helped raise more than $5,000 this year for JDRF, more than double their goal.
“Makenzie is very active this year and very aware,” said Oldt, who lives in Westlake Village. “She said to me, ‘Mom, when we walk to find a cure for diabetes, where is it going to be? Where are we going to find it?’”
In spite of heavy rain, Oldt said “it was a fantastic day” that began at 8 a.m. with games, music and food. By 9:30 a.m., the clouds parted and the sun was shining in time for the 11 a.m. walk that kicked off with a pep talk by Jonas.
“There was a phenomenal turnout,” said Oldt, who estimated there were more than 12,000 people at the event.
Aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents came to give support, including Makenzie’s 85-year-old great-grandmother, who walked one lap around the stadium, and Makenzie’s nanny Ashley Orlando.
“Makenzie has a very positive attitude and she’s very open about her robot,” the name Makenzie gave her insulin pump, Orlando said. “I take care of Makenzie daily so (diabetes research) is very near and dear to my heart.”
Peggy Sabol, Makenzie’s grandmother, said Makenzie loved the attention she received at the walk.
“People stopped by her booth to meet her,” Sabol said. “She was the belle of the ball.”
The event is a source of support for the family, Sabol said.
“To me it means that Makenzie, Jeff and Gretchen aren’t in this alone,” Sabol said. “They could feel everyone’s embrace.”
Type 1 diabetes, also known as juvenile diabetes, usually develops in children, teens and young adults whose pancreas doesn’t produce an insulin hormone that changes glucose in the blood into energy.
Those who suffer from the disease receive insulin shots or carry pumps that deliver insulin into the body to prevent high amounts of glucose from accumulating in the blood over a long period of time, which can be fatal.
It is different from the more common type 2 diabetes, which prevents the body from producing enough insulin or stops it from using insulin to convert sugar in the blood into energy.
According to JDRF, about 3 million people living in the United States have type 1 diabetes, and the number of people diagnosed increases 3 to 4 percent every year. More than 30,000 people in the U.S. will be diagnosed this year.
Oldt recalled taking her daughter to a doctor after she became lethargic and cranky, began to urinate heavily and vomit, and developed dark circles under her eyes.
“Her body began shutting down,” said Oldt, who did not suspect diabetes was the cause since neither her nor her husband’s family had a history of the disease.
After multiple medical tests, Makenzie was diagnosed and admitted to Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.
After the diagnosis, Oldt was determined to research everything she could about diabetes, but an endocrinologist at the hospital advised her to stay away from the Internet for three months.
“This is a disease many children have, but the information on the Internet is not specific to each child,” Oldt said.
For example, Oldt noticed that Makenzie’s blood sugar level rises after she eats eggs, a presumably safe food for those with type 1 diabetes because it does not contain carbohydrates.
To make sure Makenzie’s blood sugar is balanced, Oldt and her husband check it as soon as Makenzie wakes up in the morning and every two to three hours throughout the day and night. Sometimes, Makenzie sleeps through the tests.
“She thinks it’s what life is,” Oldt said. “She handles it very well.”
Once in a while, Makenzie will resist the needles, her mother said.
“Our message is always, ‘We have to do the test to keep you healthy,’” Oldt said.
Makenzie attends Ascension Lutheran Early Childhood Center preschool, swims, dances and runs.
“She hasn’t skipped a beat,” Oldt said.
Her radiant smile was on display Sunday at Dodger Stadium. And not just because she got to shake Nick Jonas’ hand and receive a signed Team Nick Tshirt.
“She’s got this spirit about her that is uniquely positive,” Oldt said. “I’m so grateful that people are inspired by Makenzie. She’s a natural cheerleader. I’m in awe with how well she manages and copes with such daunting challenges. I have to remind myself that she’s 3.”
For more information about type 1 diabetes or to make a donation to JDRF, visit www.jdrfla.org.
