Hello DFC Friends and Families -
As we reflect on 2023, The DFC has so much to be grateful for, and that is all because of YOU! Our mission is to positively transform life with diabetes through the power of community, and YOU are our community. YOU are the reason we host Camp Morris, Teen Retreats, and Family Retreats. Thank you for trusting us with your children and your diabetes and for believing in our transformative community. We are grateful to all of you and can't wait to see you in 2024!
We hosted the largest Camp Morris EVER, with over 180 campers and over 90 staff. The week was filled with PMA, Teamwork, Community, and FUN! We cannot wait to see all our campers back next summer for the best week of the year. Registration for Camp will open in mid-February, and we will be launching a new platform that will make completing forms faster and easier.
We hosted two outstanding Fall Retreats, welcoming more than 100 people to participate in the fun of learning, leading, and supporting one another. The 2024 Retreat dates will be released soon!
Use the links below to stay in touch
The DFC WON!
The BowStern Project Mayday Grant, offering us $100,000 in marketing support for 2024. We look forward to partnering with BowStern as we reach new families, expand our community, and support more people and their families impacted by T1D.
Give the gift of PMA
Finally, we are finishing up our end-of-year campaign. This campaign helps the DFC continue to have the successes listed above. As we reach more people, we will need more resources to support them on their T1D, so if it works for your budget, please consider a donation of any amount today and ask those you love to support the organization that transformed your life with diabetes. Donate Now!
2024 EVENTS
Mom’s Night Out
Join us for the BEST night away for D-Moms!
Charlotte, February 2-3, 2024 at Canopy by Hilton. Click the learn more button, see our past event reports and photos, and register to attend this unique event full of information, community, and laughter.
March 23, 2024
8:30 am - 4:00 pm
Lenoir-Rhyne University
Registration Opens January 14th at www.thedfc.org
The DFC's Camp to Community program is a one-day event that provides children aged 5-14 living with type 1 diabetes and their family members with fun, laughter, education, and community connection through recreational-based programming supported by diabetes care professionals. Our outstanding volunteer staff and medical counselors, most of them living with diabetes themselves, design activities that offer teachable moments about diabetes management, team problem-solving opportunities, and challenges that empower and build campers' confidence in themselves and their diabetes management and leadership skills. By offering children with diabetes the opportunity to experience camp, they learn from one another, build more authentic relationships with medical professionals, find role models in our staff, and make enduring friendships that last a lifetime.
We do not stop there. We offer families the opportunity to find resources in their area, learn from experts, and share their stories with each other. These authentic peer-to-peer connections build more resilient and cohesive communities that are based on trust, optimism, and compassion. The belonging and empowerment that participants feel at the end of a Camp to Community event transform lives and create a sustainable community that supports all those impacted by diabetes.
Individuals living with T1D are nominated to receive a PMA Airlift package by a parent, guardian, friend, family member or healthcare provider. The DFC receives the nomination, reviews the request, and assigns the airlift package to be filled by one of our dedicated PMA Airlift Volunteers. A fun box filled with resources, inspiration, and a personal note arrives at the nominee's door in a few short weeks. The package offers hope, support, resources, and a reminder that the recipients are not alone in the challenges of living with diabetes. Our DFC Community is here, and together - we can do anything!
June 9-15th
Camp Hanes - King, NC
Raising 3rd graders - raising Seniors
Registration Opens in February at www.thedfc.org
Camp Morris is the DFC’s flagship program and largest event of the year by far. We are North Carolina’s largest residential diabetes summer camp and serve approximately 200 campers annually! Kids and teens living with diabetes will be welcomed to YMCA Camp Hanes in King, North Carolina, the week of June 9th. During this week, campers will experience an independent camp program chock-full of excitement, friendship, teachable moments, and opportunities to be challenged by choice. Campers are supervised by experienced counselors (many of whom are living with diabetes themselves) who are trained at “meeting campers where they’re at,” using teachable moments throughout the week to promote healthy, age-appropriate independence in diabetes management. Campers are supported by counselors and cared for by a dedicated team of healthcare professionals from across the state of North Carolina, including Atrium Health, Novant Health, Wake Baptist, Cone Health, UNC Health, and Duke Health. The Mission and Vision of the Diabetes Family Connection is the heart and soul of this outstanding week-long camp session.
