Easlyn and McKindry Gagon

This is Callie and Easlyn cruisin' the parking lot in front of our apartments. Rachel, does the van in the background look familiar.
Some good friends of ours have had a hard few years. The lived right next door to us in Ogden, UT. Their oldest, Easlyn, is the same age as Callie. While we lived there George was born. Their second girl, McKindry, was born a few months before George. When George was 4 months old we moved to Oregon. They ended up moving to Denver, CO after Chad (the husband) had graduated. It was Christmas time of 2004 that McKindry was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes or “Juvenile Diabetes.”. That summer(05) the kids and I visited them while David had buisness mettings in Denver. I got to see a very, very small fraction of what Jeri (the wife) had to do to take care of her. I could not imagine. At the time of us visiting, Chad was in Pennsylvania working while Jeri was trying to sell the house in Denver with the three girls.(they had another girl while in Denver) They finally sold the house and moved on out there. We were excited to hear a little while later that they were expecting a boy. Not long after he was born their oldest daughter Easlyn was diagnosed with the same thing. My heart just ached for them. After that point I hadn't heard from them much. I'm sure they are very busy. Well, today I got an email about a Run for a cure. It was a form letter but they explained a little about Type 1 Diabetes and what some of the things the girls go through. Here is part of their email.

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Easlyn(8) and McKindry(6) have been diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes or “Juvenile Diabetes.”This means their bodies have stopped the production of insulin; therefore, we must constantly monitor and treat their blood sugar levels. To ensure Easlyn and McKindry’s bodies stay healthy we must check their blood sugar levels at least four times a day. They are both using insulin pumps to administer their insulin. The pump sends a constant drip of insulin into their bodies 24 hours a day. They must input their blood sugar levels and the amount of carbohydrates they eat to get the extra insulin that is required any time they eat. The pump has been a much easier way for us to administer their insulin and has taken the place of the four shots a day that they were receiving in the past. Now they only have to get stuck once every 2-3 days when we must change the pump site to avoid infection.More than one million Americans have Juvenile Diabetes. This is a disease most often diagnosed in childhood that strikes suddenly, lasts a lifetime, and carries the constant threat of deadly complications, including heart disease, stroke, blindness, kidney failure, and amputation. Last summer we experienced the seriousness of diabetes when McKindry went into diabetic shock and had a seizure, due to extremely low blood sugars. Both Easlyn and McKindry have been on the opposite end of the spectrum and experienced especially high blood sugars that caused them to develop Ketones. These Ketones can build up in their bodies and can be lethal if not flushed out quickly. A visit to the emergency room is the only way to get rid of the Ketones and both girls have had at least 2 visits to the ER. Managing diabetes is definitely a balancing act.

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I generally knew about diabetes but that explained it a little more for me. I didn't mean for this to be sad. It just made me count my blessings and to think of others. And how I could probably do more to help others or serve more diligently in my calling at church.