Age: 14
Age at T1D diagnosis: 9

Ian lives by the advice his parents shared upon his T1D diagnosis. “My mom and dad told me, ‘You can do whatever you want—we may just have to do things a little bit different.’”

Today, Ian does things his own way. A JDRF ambassador, he shares his story with large groups and raises funds for JDRF—in fact, he raised $3,000 and recruited 20 walkers for the 2011 Walk. An honor-roll student, Ian also excels in football and basketball. One of his biggest goals is encouraging awareness of T1D. “The more aware Members of Congress are and their ability to actually see the human side of it by meeting and hearing from people who actually live with type 1 diabetes, the greater their desire to want to help make the lives of these people better.”