Saber Es
Querer was a grassroots organization formed to educate the people of
Buenos Aires about diabetes. Nearly 1 in 10 Argentineans are estimated to have
the disease, but only 95 in 100 are aware they have the disease or know
how to live healthfully with it. If not properly controlled, diabetes can lead
to stroke, kidney failure, amputations and blindness.
As a daughter of a diabetic, I watched my
mother suffer a stroke and a string of related complications that
threatened and eventually took her life. My family knew little about the disease, although my mother
had been diagnosed more than 10 years before. We learned through our ordeal that
much of our pain could have been avoided with proper care and responsible
choices about what she ate and how she took care of herself.
I felt compelled to help others avoid
the powerlessness that my mother and my family were
experiencing and began talking to people about diabetes only to find out that many
were ready to help – nearly everyone I knew had friends or family or
associates with the disease and felt they didn’t know enough about it, either.
Together we were determined to bring
informative, accessible and inspiring educational messages
to the people of
Buenos
Aires. Rather than holding seminars in a hospital setting, our outreach efforts
are included within entertainment channels starting with a benefit concert on
November 14th, 2004.
We were seeking
broad-based support from those living with the disease and those in government,
business and entertainment who can support our efforts to improve the awareness
and quality of life of those who have or may have the disease.
