In 1992, Sandra Silvestri began a journey she never anticipated. Her son Joey was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes (T1D) at the age of two. Since then, she has not slowed down to help find better treatments and, ultimately, a cure for her son and the millions of others who live with the disease.

Sandra found JDRF in 1995, hoping to meet other families facing the challenges of T1D. “When your child is diagnosed with T1D, it is a very frightening, unsettling and lonely time,” she says. “We were hoping to learn survival and coping skills from those who had walked this path before us.” She attended an annual JDRF conference in Washington, D.C. and wondered why children were not present. “I remember thinking, ‘They have to be here. No one knows what this means and what they need as much as they do,’” she says. JDRF Government Relations staff and key volunteers, Leah Mullin and Gail Pressburg, as well as children in the JDRF community, especially Tommy Solo who gave voice to this need, were wishing to speak for themselves also. Subsequently, Sandra was asked to chair the first JDRF Children’s Congress and to represent the family perspective during its creation. “I loved finding the children and reading their letters,” she says. At one of the first committee meetings, a question was raised to clarify what the goal was for the event. Sandra responded with words she had heard from Carol Lurie and Lee Ducat (the founders of JDRF), and many other families: “We want the representatives, senators and everyone on Capitol Hill to promise to remember us when we visit them.” The JDRF advocacy campaign “Promise to Remember Me” was born.

Reflecting on that first Children’s Congress, Sandra says, “The entire event was the most inspirational and intense event I have ever participated in. My favorite moment was the first night as the children arrived from every corner of our nation and they all began to meet each other and I saw these incredible families exchanging hope and commitment. It was very moving and I will carry that night with me for all of my life.”

Sandra encourages families to get involved and apply for the 2015 Children’s Congress. “Our country is special because we have a voice in our government. You can bring such power with your words. Your legislators need to hear from you,” says Sandra. Applications are open through December 1, 2014.

Sandra has enough energy to devote to several JDRF programs, and so has also served on the JDRF International Board of Directors and Lay Review Committee, as well as been a very active participant in the JDRF Walk. One evening in 1997, Sandra came home from a Lay Review meeting and Joey asked “Did you get the cure, Mommy?” That made her realize that her son should be more included. She and several other families decided to get involved with the JDRF Walk. At the time, there was not one in Monterey Bay. She and her friends banded together and created the Monterey Bay Walk. Sandra’s family team, Joe’s Impatient Walkers, have participated each year since then, feeling empowered as they support research for a cure and raise awareness in the community. “After 15 years of walking locally, we are still building relationships, finding new families and raising money. Our little agricultural community has raised roughly $5 million for T1D research. As I like to say, that is a lot of test tubes!” Sandra served as Co-Chair for the 2014 Monterey Bay Walk and hosted a Walk Kick Off event at Silvestri Vineyards in Carmel Valley. “It is an exciting time to be working for cure, with JDRF-funded research that is bringing us closer than ever to a final answer. We are making a huge difference by walking and fundraising and that feels good!” she says.

Sandra’s unshakable drive is contagious, motivating others to get more involved. “Since the day her son was diagnosed with T1D, Sandra has been all in,” says Julie Rickert, JDRF Greater Bay Area Chapter Executive Director. “She tirelessly gives her time and passion, support and inspiration. She is a doer and a team player, fighting for a cure for her son and the millions of others who live with T1D.”

Today, Joey is doing well and has graduated from college with a degree in poetry. He presented a poem he wrote at the 10 year anniversary of Children’s Congress in 2009 and continues to support Joe’s Impatient Walkers.

Sandra and her husband Alan live in Carmel. They have three children, Joey, Alexandra, and James and two grandchildren, Aubrey and Emerson. Sandra’s husband is the Oscar-nominated composer (Forrest Gump) who also co-wrote the Children’s Congress theme song “Promise to Remember Me.” They have a vineyard in Carmel Valley where they make estate wines. Silvestri VIneyards has been a long-time sponsor of the JDRF Walk.