Emma Weston, her Husband Paul Weston and their family from Hertfordshire organized a bake sale event in Broxbourne to raise an impressive amount for Diabetes UK in March. Her son, Archie, 2 was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes when he was 1 year old.
Emma said: “The cake sale was a huge success and we are extremely grateful for all the support received. Since Archie has been diagnosed, we have a team of supporters known as Team Archie. They are friends and family that help keep us going on the tough days. We have lots of different events where we all get together to try and raise money and awareness.
"For the cake sale, we have made this an annual event to date. My in-laws and sister-in-law live on a big housing development, so we post leaflets through every door with Archie and stop and talk to people asking for their support baking cakes and also inviting them to the cake sale. Everyone comes out in force. We have leaflets that we have made which include the early signs to look out for and they detail the differences between type one and two. Archie also attends the day so people can see him and what they are helping raise money for.
"If you want to hold a bake sale: Get the word out and ask for help. Don’t be shy in emailing every company locally, you will be surprised at their generosity!” Emma’s work Tesco, also generously topped up the amount raised by 20% and have been very supportive since Archie’s diagnosis."
Community Fundraising Manager, Midlands and East of England at Diabetes UK, Charlotte Wright said: “We are so grateful for the efforts of team Archie and the power of word of mouth and community fundraising. Events like this bake sale really make a huge difference in raising money and awareness of diabetes locally. Some feel nervous hosting a bake sale in aid of Diabetes UK, however, they can be an incredible tool to educate within your communities.”
Scary diagnosis and adapting to life with type 1
Emma said of Archie’s diagnosis as a 1-year-old baby: “I had raised my concerns to the GP and health visitor about his constant thirst and his increased wet nappies but it was just dismissed as being a result of the hot weather, so Archie went into severe Diabetic Ketoacidosis (DKA) and we came close to losing him. His diagnosis came as a complete shock, although we knew in our gut that he was very ill. Luckily, he was sent to A&E. It was the scariest time of our lives and there were COVID-19 restrictions"
Archie is a strong resilient little boy and we take strength from him. Managing his diabetes is tough because of his age and it means a lot of sleepless nights for us as parents, but we are determined not to let it stop him from anything in life.
The family has another child, Evie aged 5 and they have all adapted to life with type 1 diabetes. Both parents work from home Archie has an insulin pump and a Continuous Glucose Monitor, Dexcom, which help manage his condition. The grandparents have also been trained so that they can help with childcare and give support. Since the diagnosis, the family wanted to become involved with Diabetes UK, to raise money and awareness of the condition.
Emma thinks that more needs to be done to educate people on the difference between type 1 and type 2 diabetes: “We have received negative comments from people who think we have fed him too much chocolate and when we give him sweets people judge. But we choose to ignore the comments and just try to educate.”
Find out more about type 1 diabetes and the symptoms of type 1 diabetes.
If you are interested in fundraising in the Midlands and East of England, contact our Community Fundraising Manager, Charlotte Wright: Charlotte.Wright@diabetes.org.uk
