Local paper covered Walk!

Big crowd gets valley diabetes walk started on the right foot

By PAT STANLEY, Register Staff Writer
Sunday, October 23, 2005 2:53 PM PDT

More than 600 people, from toddlers to seniors, marched in Napa's first-ever Walk to Cure Diabetes at St. Supery Winery in Rutherford Saturday.

"It was a great day," said Heather Haynes, outreach manager for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. She had expected only about 400 would show up for the fundraiser.

Many marchers showed their support for young victims of the disease by sporting T-shirts emblazoned with team names such as Jacob's Crew, Hog Dog'n for Amber, the Needle Squadron and Jack the Bean Stalker.

For an hour before a ribbon was cut signaling the start of the two-mile trek, the crowd was entertained by the Napa High School Jazz Band, Violet the Clown and others.

Francisco Castillo of Vallejo donned a superhero costume and was joined by a young Batman and Superman. He vowed to form a "superhero team" for next year's North Bay walk.

Zachary Lee, 10, of Santa Rosa pulled up his shirt to proudly showed his insulin pump. His mother, Theresa, said, "We're looking for a cure for him."She said the pump device "has made our life better."

"Many people have old and wrong ideas about diabetes," she said. "Some people look down on you as a parent and think you fed your kids wrong (causing the disease)."

Lee's older sibling, Carson, wore a Disney character Goofy costume. "I'm doing it for my brother," he said.

Jack Castleberry of Napa is only 6, but it was his third walk. He was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes at age 3.

Tommy Fox was only 16 months old when diagnosed. "This is our fifth year," his father, Jim Fox, said. The boy has walked in prior events in San Francisco and Sacramento.

"It could happen to anybody," the father said. "Tommy had flu-like symptoms. It turned out it was diabetes. We almost lost him."

Officials said it will be a week or longer before they learn how much was raised by the event. Funds will be used for research that participants hope will someday lead to a cure.

Juvenile diabetes occurs when the body fails to produce insulin, a hormone needed to convert sugar, starches and other food into energy needed for daily life. Once diagnosed with the disease, patients must take insulin for the rest of their lives. Juvenile, or type one, diabetes can lead to devastating complications including kidney failure, blindness, heart disease, stroke and amputations. It can be fatal.

The Rutherford walk was one of 11 similar events already held or scheduled before July 2006 in the Bay Area.

For information about the disease, go online to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (Greater Bay Area Chapter) Web site at www.jdrf.org/greaterbay.

The Final Walk Details

It is only days until the first Walk to Cure Diabetes steps off in the Napa Valley! Now is the time to wrap up some last minute details and make a final push to collect those straggling donations. But not to worry: Checks not available on walk day can be mailed to the JDRF Bay Area Chapter until Nov. 21.

Any Team Shelby members who have collected donations but cannot attend the Walk, you may mail your collected checks (all made out to the JDRF) to the Team Shelby HQ for us to turn in for you, or directly to the JDRF Bay Area Chapter with a notation that they were collected on behalf of Team Shelby (Corey).

Below is all the info you'll need to make this a tremendously successful walk day! If you have any questions, please let us know ASAP!

Walk Day Specifics:

• Date: Saturday, October 22nd, 2005
• Location: St. Supery Vineyards & Winery
• Schedule
  10:00 am Check-in Starts
  10:00 am - 11:00 am Music, Food, Entertainment, Kids Corner, Silent Auction
  11:00 am Walk Starts
  11:45 am BBQ Hosted by Saturn at the Vineyard. Team Shelby will tailgate with some extras, so bring items to share!

Turning in Checks, Cash and Matching Gifts:

• For checks over $250, please put the walker's name and team name in the Memo Line of the check.
• For checks under $250, the canceled check is the walker's receipt.
• Please convert all cash into checks made payable to JDRF.
• Please include your Workplace Matching Gifts form in your Collection Envelope.
• To speed the check-in process, every walker should have a FULLY COMPLETED and signed Collection Envelope. If you do not already have a collection envelope, please get one from a check-in volunteer and fill it out completely. DO NOT include online donations on your walk envelope.
• NOTE: Please allow at least 4 weeks for us to process all money turned in on walk day.

Corporate or Family Team Walkers

Check-in tables will be organized alphabetically. Team Shelby will be listed under T, so look for our name on the correct sign.

JDRF T-Shirts & Incentive Prizes

• Walkers turning in a minimum of $100 on Walk day will receive a 2005 Walk to Cure Diabetes T-Shirt, which will only be available on 10/22/05 and JDRF cannot send them to you.
• For donations turned into JDRF before 11/21/05, incentive prizes will be mailed 8 weeks after the Walk & cannot be guaranteed by the holidays.

Directions to St. Supery Vineyards & Winery
8440 St. Helena Hwy (Hwy 29)
Rutherford, CA 94573
*Look for the twin palms

Click for Route Map

From the San Francisco Bay Bridge:

1. Take Interstate 80 east toward Sacramento/Reno. In Vallejo, take the Hwy 29/Marine World Parkway exit toward Napa. Turn right onto Hwy. 29 and follow signs north toward Calistoga.
2. Hwy. 29 is also called the "St. Helena Hwy." St. Supery is located 12 miles north of the town of Napa on Hwy. 29, between Oakville and Rutherford Crossroads. Look right as you head up valley for the tall twin palm trees at St. Supery's entrance.

From Sacramento:

• Take Interstate 80 toward San Francisco. Exit at Hwy. 12 toward Napa, just beyond the Hwy. 680/80 interchange. Follow Hwy. 12 until it ends at Hwy. 29 and turn right. Follow the signs toward Calistoga.
• See # 2 above.

From the Golden Gate Bridge:

• Take Hwy. 101 north past the city of San Rafael. Take the Hwy. 29 exit toward Vallejo (east). Turn left at Hwy. 121/12 and follow signs to Napa. Hwy. 121/12 ends at Hwy. 29 just south of Napa - turn left and proceed up-valley toward the winery.
• See # 2 above.

Parking is VERY limited, so please try to carpool. No bikes.