Age: 16
Age at Diagnosis: 11

It doesn’t matter if it’s managing life with T1D or spending 9 months working hard to recover from a ruptured ACL to return to competitive gymnastics, Ariel faces every challenge the same way: head on! Ariel is an active participant in the T1D Connections program, where she reaches out to people who have been recently diagnosed with T1D to offer guidance and support, which is work she’s rightfully very proud of. “These support groups and so many more are so important so every person with T1D knows they are not alone.”

Ariel is a member of the National Honor Society, is part of the science research (STEM) program at school, and works as a pre-K youth advisor at her synagogue. When she gets older, Ariel envisions herself going to medical school to become a pediatrician, and continuing to advocate for children.