ROANOKE, Va. – Nonprofits have taken a huge hit during the pandemic, which even forced the local chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) to shut down.
For decades, JDRF has been helping type one diabetics like Sally Southard.
“We boiled our glass syringes, well now we have insulin pumps and artificial pancreases and we don’t have to do that,” said Southard, who’s also a JDRF board member.
Those incredible advancements have been fueled by funding at the local level. Roanoke’s chapter has certainly done its part with an annual gala and walk for a cure, bringing together hundreds of people and raising hundreds of thousands of dollars. But those are two distant memories because of the pandemic.
JDRF has ordered no in-person events, cut 50% of its staff and closed many chapters, including in Roanoke.
“They have to rely on local volunteers a lot more than they did,” Southard said.
Now those volunteers in Roanoke are stepping up.
“There’s only a small group of us on the committee for this but the funds aren’t there like they have been in the past,” said JDRF volunteer Becky Fogarty.
Despite unprecedented obstacles, they’ve managed to pull off a pandemic-appropriate plan: a virtual concert set for Sunday.
“We’ve really tried to work hard. We probably won’t meet the goals that we have in the past for the walk. It’s about $250,000. Our goal for the concert this weekend is $10,000,” Fogarty said.
With money tight and donations down, potentially life-changing research is at risk. The work could not only help Southard, but millions of people counting on it for a better life.
“Even five dollars, $20, $100, whatever, every little bit helps and when you put those all together, it could fund a whole research trial or something,” Southard said.
The concert is happening Sunday, October 25 from 6 to 8 p.m. at the 5 Points Music Sanctuary.
Some socially-distanced, in-person tickets that include dinner are still available.
The virtual concert will be livestreamed on the JDRF Greater Blue Ridge Facebook page.
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