Jackie Singer is a junior at the
How old were you when you started Diabetic Angels?
Although my twin sister, Mollie, and I began lobbying Congress and the White House, to increase funding for diabetes research at the age of six, we were 10-years-old when, with the help of our mom Jackie and her twin sister Mollie, we started the Diabetic Angels.
Is there a story behind it?
Yes, there is a story behind the creation of the Diabetic Angels, one that is sad and unfortunate, but the good news is we have a happy ending! The inspiration behind the Diabetic Angels began in grade school, when Mollie and I experienced discrimination and intolerance. By the time we reached fourth grade, Mollie had repeatedly faced challenges no child should have to experience. However, the incident that caused us to say 'enough,' turned out to be a blessing in disguise. This particular incident came about after we had been invited to a friend's birthday party when prior to the party the host announced, "Mollie, my mom said I have to uninvite you to my birthday party, because Diabetics are a hassle...but Jackie can still come!" I'm sure you can imagine how humiliated and sad Mollie felt, and I was stunned…I wondered how anyone could do something so hurtful. I remember thinking, isn't it bad enough that Mollie and kids like her have to live with this devastating disease? How much more does she have to take? I knew that we had to stop this insanity; we were determined to do everything in our power to not let this happen to Mollie, or any other Diabetics ever again. We realized that people are rarely intentionally cruel; rather they are just afraid and uninformed. We could stop the pain if we could stop the ignorance; we only had to teach our friends about diabetes and let them become part of the solution, rather than remaining the problem!
As a direct result of this incident, we have created an organization that through education helps to prevent other diabetics from encountering the same hurtful experiences. So, while simultaneously volunteering for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation , we, meaning our mom, aunt, Mollie and me, have made the Diabetic Angels our passion and our mission. We are determined to help people across the globe, which we are currently doing, by creating a network of Diabetics and people who support them known as, "Diabetic Angels." DA's not only communicate and interact via the Internet, but they work together to educate, advocate, and fundraise for a common goal: to erase and prevent discrimination, while working to cure diabetes.
What type of Diabetes have you been diagnosed with?
Well, although we are twins, I, Jackie, do not have diabetes…Mollie does. Yes, my twin sister is a Type 1 Juvenile Diabetic (also known as insulin dependent). Mollie was diagnosed at the age of four and although she has had her problems, 15 years later, we are thrilled and grateful that she is healthy and free of complications.
Do you think it is important that the founder of a cause has also had personal experience with it?
Yes, it is important, but not necessary. In the case of the Diabetic Angels, three of the four Founders of the DA's are not diabetics, only Mollie is a diabetic. However, every member of our family lives with diabetes through Mollie. We must do whatever we can to help cure diabetes today, for every day we go without a cure, more diabetics are added to the 246 million people worldwide, who already struggle with this devastating disease.
When you started Diabetic Angels at your school, it began as a club. How did you get classmates to join? Did teachers show support?
In the beginning, the DA's started with 10 of our best friends, who were well aware that Mollie was a diabetic. As time went on, the word spread that this 'club' was unlike any other, it was a fun group that took action for something in which we all believed…a cure for Mollie. We didn't have boring meetings that resembled a science lesson; rather we made them fun and interesting. For example we would have meetings at the local water park, or pizzeria, or we would have a sleep over party, it wasn't all work or all play, we mixed it up by having bi-monthly meetings that proved to be both productive and fun! Also, when we started to attract local and national media coverage, the DA's became pretty well known for giving interviews and fundraising via the annual JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation) "Walk to Cure Diabetes," as well as, for their letter writing campaigns to the President and congress.
We went from a simple club at school to an international social network connecting people on 6 continents. We have raised over $600,000.00 for medical research and are so proud of the members of "Diabetic Angels ," they are helping each other, reaching out to those in need, and ultimately aiding in finding the cure!
Currently your website functions as a social network which allows anyone to become an interactive member and supporter of the cause. How did you spread the word out about your cause online?
Today, aside from local, national and international media coverage (newspapers, tv, radio, etc.), the internet is the easiest and fastest way to spread awareness, from being featured in national magazine articles i.e., Teen Vogue and Justine, to receiving online publicity through popular blogs in the diabetic and health community, as well as, through Myspace and Facebook, just to name a few. Finally, with the help of dosomething.org , our profile is listed on their website, and I, Jackie am listed as a 2008 Do Something Award finalist (formerly known as the BR!CK Awards). The DA story and my picture are currently being featured on bags of Frito-Lay's Doritos Nachos Cheese Tortilla Chips too!
How have you moved your cause forward politically? Have you taken steps to gain support from Congress?
Yes, we have literally been walking the halls of Congress since we were six-years-old, as diabetic advocates; its actually one of our first and most memorable experiences. We traveled to
When you first started Diabetic Angels, how did you raise funding?
We started small, with local fundraisers, i.e. lemonade and bake sales, then we approached local businesses around the
You were a 2008 finalist for the Do Something Award. How did you go about doing this and how has Do Something helped you to further your cause?
Being a finalist in the Do Something Awards was truly an honor, and the process, the friends, and information I attained along the way has been extremely beneficial and are all things for which I am very grateful. Regarding the process to apply for the Do Something Awards, it began with creating a profile for Dosomething.org, then completing their online application (essays, recommendation letters, etc.), and once that is submitted, I was informed I was chosen as a finalist (YAY!). A few months later the finalists were flown to NYC to participate in a "Boot Camp" or an informative series of lectures to help us further our project/organization, a photo shoot for the Doritos campaign (bags of tortilla chips that would have our picture and summary of our cause on the back), and completing our trip to the Big Apple was multiple interviews to narrow down the finalists who would be chosen as nominees for the Teen Choice Awards, which was televised on Fox last summer and selected the $100,000.00 winner of the 2008 Do Something Award.
Do you come from a family of twins? What is that like? Has it been helpful in the success of Diabetic Angels?
Family is definitely a number one priority for us, and in case you were wondering, all of us LOVE being twins! Being twins, as well as, twins of twins (haha!) does help in the awareness and advertising aspect of our cause. If we attend a conference for example, we each spread out and are able to talk to 4 times as many people.
In addition to Diabetic Angels, you are pursuing a music career. What sparked this?
Going back a few years, our mom and aunt had their own musical act and were very successful, but as we grew up, we discovered that we too had a special love for music. Initially, our mom and aunt tried to talk the two of us out of a career in music, but we were destined to follow in their footsteps and pursue a career in music. So one day, when our mom and aunt were showing us something about harmony and stage presence, the four of us sang together, and at the same time all of us recognized that something special had just happened, we created a sound that was truly unique and we knew it! We now call ourselves, Mollie and Jackie MJ2 , which is the short stage name for Mollie and Jackie and Mollie and Jackie. See us on Youtube.
How do Diabetic Angels and your rising music career work together?
For the four of us, it just seemed so natural to combine our two passions, music and nonprofit/advocacy. Our goal as MJ2 and as the DA's is to simultaneously be successful in the music industry, while raising awareness for the DA's and the need to cure Diabetes. We plan on utilizing the talent and publicity surrounding Mollie and Jackie MJ2, as we, the founders and creators of the Diabetic Angels, tour
How do you juggle being a student with Diabetic Angels and a music career?
We focus on what we need to do, as we choose our classes for the
After all is said and done, are you having fun?
Absolutely! That is what life is all about having fun, recognizing your blessings and keeping your misfortunes in perspective! I once heard a quote from Albert Schweitzer and I truly believe it to be true: "Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful." All of us have so much fun and whole-heartedly love and believe in what we are doing to help people, through our music and through the DA's.
