Helmsley Charitable Trust Sustainability Grant Awarded to DiabetesSisters

Helmsley Charitable Trust Sustainability Grant Awarded to DiabetesSisters

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
DiabetesSisters
919/361-2012
Media Contact: Regina Kaiser
908/884-4101
info@diabetessisters.orgregina@diabetessisters.org 

 

Helmsley Charitable Trust Sustainability Grant Awarded to DiabetesSisters
$100,000 grant helps ensure expansion and ongoing success of programs
that engage, unite, and empower women with diabetes 

 

DURHAM, NC - September 15, 2012 - The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust has awarded a $100,000 sustainability grant to DiabetesSisters, which will be used to optimize and expand the organization’s current program infrastructure.

Founded in 2008, DiabetesSisters’ mission is to improve the health and quality of life of women with and at risk of diabetes and to advocate on their behalf. The organization’s website supports its growing membership of 12,000 through support and education programs such as sisterTALK blogs and the SisterMatch Program. In-person, DiabetesSisters offers monthly PODS (Part of DiabetesSisters) Meetups and Quarterly Gatherings in 30 US cities and 1 Canadian city. The organization also hosts at least one of their signature Weekend for Women Conferences each year to provide a weekend of informational session, encouragement and support to women with diabetes. In 2011, DiabetesSisters hosted the first orange:will Diabetes Awareness Walk to raise awareness and funds for the cause.

“We strongly believe that all women with diabetes should have access to a healthy support system that includes peers with diabetes. This grant from the Helmsley Charitable Trust enables us to continue providing a healthy peer support system for so many women feel alone in this disease. Overall, the grant will have a major impact on the health outcomes of women with diabetes,” said Brandy Barnes, Founder and CEO of DiabetesSisters.

“There are very few resources available to educate, support and advocate for women with diabetes through both online and in-person networks nationally and internationally. Therefore, there is a need to target this often overlooked population, which DiabetesSisters provides,” notes Helmsley Trustee David Panzirer.

About The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust (www.helmsleytrust.org)

The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust aspires to improve lives by supporting effective nonprofits in a variety of selected areas. Since 2008, when the Trust began its active grant-making, it has committed over $650 million to a wide range of charitable organizations. For more information on the Trust and its programs, please visit the website, www.helmsleytrust.org.

About DiabetesSisters

DiabetesSisters is a national 501c3 non-profit health organization whose mission is to improve the health and quality of life of women with and at risk of developing diabetes and to advocate on their behalf. The organization’s key initiatives include the orange:will campaign, SisterMatch Program, sisterTALK Blogs, the Women’s Forum, From the Experts Column, local PODS Meetups, and the Annual Weekend for Women Conference. For more information, please visit http://www.diabetessisters.org.

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