Pinwheels for Prevention

If you visit Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden in April, you'll see a host of blue and silver pinwheels, beside the lake, beneath the trees, fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

(I was an English major, and oft, in vacant or pensive mood, Wordsworth's poem flashes upon my inner eye. I can't help it.)

Three thousand pinwheels, to be exact. And the day I visited, the first sunny day in over a week, they did seem to be dancing, throwing off light from 1200 silvery petals. They were perfect beacons of hope.

For many years, April has been "Child Abuse Prevention Month," symbolized by blue ribbons. This year, Prevent Child Abuse Virginia (PCAV) has introduced the blue pinwheel as an addition symbol. The 3000 pinwheels palnted in the Children's Garden represent the children who have been served by the Healthy Families Virginia program last year in the Central Virginia and Tidewater regions.

(Healthy Families is a national program model whose ultimate goal is to enhance child growth and development by teaching positive parenting and preventing abuse and neglect. PCAV runs the program in Virginia.)

PCAV invites everyone to plant a pinwheel--or a pinwheel garden--in April to show support for healthy families and a world free of child abuse and neglect. You can make your own pinwheel or purchase one for $1, with proceeds benefitting PCAV. Call (804) 359-6166 ext. 309 to order.

Elliott Yamin is Gonna Be Upstaged!

Thirty kids from all around the Richmond area are practicing hard for their moment in the spotlight at the Central Virginia Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation's Gala on March 1. (See our main page for a video of a recent rehearsal. Don't they sound great?)

They'll be sharing the spotlight, and the microphone, with some dude named Elliott Yamin. But for the kids I talked to before a rehearsal last week, being on stage with the "American Idol" star was less significant than the fact they're getting to sing their hearts out with others who share their experience of being a kid with Type 1 diabetes.

Baylee, 10, was just diagnosed in August. Her mother said she has endured some weird looks and teasing in school when she has to prick herself to monitor her blood sugar levels. She was so happy to get involved in JDRF and find out that she's not the only one in that situation.

When I asked Baylee who she'd be singing with at the gala, she said, "A lot of other kids!" "Anyone else?" I asked. She looked at her mom, trying to remember the name of that other guy. "Oh yeah, Elliott Yamin," she said.

Kendal, 7, seemed a little nervous about remembering all the words to the song, but she said she had been going over them and practicing hard.

Samantha is 7 now and was diagnosed when she was 2 years old. She wears an insulin pump, which means that her dosage of insulin to correct her blood sugar levels is regulated by the pump. She and Savannah, 8, were both very matter-of-fact as they told me about what the pump does.

Cole, 7, has hope that a cure for diabetes will be found. He says he wants to be able to eat candy like other kids.

Many of the kids had glamorous accessories, to go with the gala's theme: "Lights, Camera, Take Action!" Click on the link if you'd like to take action and learn more about JRDF or attend the gala!