Walk To Cure Diabetes

Gather your team, put on your cape, and join JDRF for the 2013 Walk to Cure Diabetes, scheduled for April 13 at the Jacksonville Fairgrounds. Check-in opens at 8 a.m., and the Walk will begin at 9 a.m. This year's Walk theme is "Superheroes on a T1D Mission," and it certainly will be a mighty event! Proceeds from the Walk will support JDRF's mission: to find a cure for type 1 diabetes (T1D) and its complications through the support of research.

Getting involved is easy and we encourage you to check out our Family Team Resources and Corporate Team Resources to learn how to get started, recruit walkers, and have fun! In the past, we were fortunate to have received generous support from corporate partners, sponsors, families, and volunteers, and we plan to increase the momentum in 2013 by taking even greater steps toward a cure!

On event day, you'll want to stick around after the 3 mile Walk (there is a 1 mile option too) for fantastic entertainment, music, delicious food, and activities galore for the whole family… all completely donated!

Click here to register online or if you have already registered, log back into your account. Be someone's superhero and make a difference today. To the Cure and Beyond!

If you have any questions, please feel free to contact our office at 904-739-2101 or email us.

Join National Chairman Nick Jonas in the Walk to Cure Diabetes!

2013 Corporate Chairman

Earnie Franklin

Earnie Franklin is the president and chief executive officer of Incepture Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Florida Blue. Incepture provides a full suite of staffing and managed solutions products to a national marketplace. In his role, Franklin has oversight of all operational aspects of Incepture; including strategic direction and successful execution of the company's objectives.

Prior to this role, Earnie served as senior vice president and chief information officer for TriServ Alliance LLC, where he was responsible for leading the information technology and systems support functions. He also served as a key member of the executive leadership team to help set the strategic direction for the company. Prior to TriServ, Earnie was vice president of Enterprise Architecture and held several other leadership positions during his 16 year tenure at Florida Blue.

Throughout his career, Earnie has been active in several professional and civic organizations. He is a member of the Executive Advisory Board for the Davis College of Business at Jacksonville University. Earnie currently serves as Chair of IT Florida, a technology-focused organization formed to enhance information technology as a key element of economic development within the state of Florida.

Earnie is a member of the United Way of Northeast Florida Campaign Cabinet and a member of the Tocqueville Society and serves as a Stein Fellow Mentor. He also is a Jacksonville Chamber Trustee serving on the Chamber Board of Governors and JAXUSA Partnership Advisory Board. He serves on a number of not-for-profit boards including, Economic Roundtable of Jacksonville, Greater Jacksonville USO, Jacksonville Information Technology Council, and executive board of the Nease Touchdown Club.

Earnie completed undergraduate studies in business and computer science at Samford University and Jacksonville University and holds a Masters in Business Administration from Jacksonville University.

2013 Sidekicks (Youth Ambassadors)

Savanna Sulfridge

My name is Savanna Sulfridge I am 14; I was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes 5 days after my 2nd birthday. I am a student at Oakleaf High School in Orange Park, Florida. My parents are Troy and Shilo Sulfridge, my dad is a Petty Officer in the US Coast Guard so we have lived a lot of places. My mom stays home to take care of myself and my two sisters, Keeley is 12, and Cayla is 9. We also have two dogs, Bear is a Chocolate Lab, and Maggie is a Miniature American Eskimo. We have been in Florida for almost 3 years. Other states our family has lived are Indiana, Virginia, California, and Ohio.

I have a lot of hobbies, I enjoy crafting, drawing, and reading, sewing, and I have recently discovered Pinterest and like finding things on there to craft. I also enjoy spending time with my family, going to the beach, or swimming. This year in school I am taking my first class in photography and have discovered just how much I really love photography which has become my favorite pass time by far!

I am looking forward to participating as the Champion Ambassador for JDRF!! I have always wanted to do something with my creativity, knowledge, caring of others, and diabetes so I wanted to do this to help find the cure and help other diabetics know it is ok and they will make it through. I have seen times good and bad for anything and I have made it so I want to help as many people with type one diabetes. I have met a few people my age, my sister Cayla's age, even my sister Keeley's age. I want to show as many children as possible that if anything, you can call diabetes a gift for all you will get out of it. It is always fun to teach other kids about something they don't know about but have. My friends say I know a lot about something I set my mind to and that I never give up on it. I am not going to give up on anyone like me with diabetes until we find a cure I hope that I can teach that if you fight and don't give up when the going gets rough that there will be paths of gold and rainbows ahead.

Ricky Picerno

Hello I'm Ricky Picerno. I am in the fifth grade at Providence School of Jacksonville. I have a younger brother, Luke, who is 8, and an older sister Rebekah who is 13. My parents are Rick and Andrea Picerno. My dad is an Orthopaedic surgeon and my mom stays home to take care of me and my brother and sister. I am actively involved at First Baptist Church of downtown Jacksonville. I love sports- especially football. I hope to play for the Gators when I am in college. This spring I am playing baseball in the Atlantic Beach league.

I was 8 years old when I was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. I didn't know what diabetes was at the time and I was scared when my pediatrician told me to go to the hospital. Lots of people came to see me while I was in the hospital.

Since then I have learned a lot about diabetes. It has changed my life in some ways and hasn't in others. I prick my finger to check my blood sugar around 8 times a day, and my dad gets up every night to check my blood sugar. I've been on an Insulin pump for over two years now. So I don't have to take shots anymore to get the insulin. An insulin pump is not a cure for diabetes, it is my life support.

I work hard every day to try to keep my blood sugar in range by counting every carb I eat, dosing insulin for it, exercising daily and eating healthy. People with diabetes still can live a normal life. Diabetes would be much harder for me if I didn't have God's help. My family and I pray for a cure every day and we are asking you to help us find a cure.

The past 3 years we have had a team in the JDRF walk. We are excited about having a team again this year! I get to do lots of cool stuff as one of the Youth Ambassadors for this year's Walk to Cure Diabetes, and am thankful for the chance to share my story with others who may be struggling with Type 1 Diabetes.

2013 Champion Endocrinologist

Dr. Ricardo A. Silva

Dr. Silva came to Northeast Florida Endocrine & Diabetes Associates directly from the University of Florida fellowship program, following an extensive study program that started at Boston University where he received an undergraduate degree, a Bachelor of Arts in Biology. Dr. Silva earned his Doctor of Medicine from Universidad Central Del Caribe, Cayey School of Medicine in Puerto Rico. This was followed by an internal medicine residency from the Michigan State University College of Human Medicine. He served as chief resident during his last year of training.

After completing his fellowship in Endocrinology, Dr. Silva decided to make Jacksonville his home instead of returning to his beloved Puerto Rico. "I knew Jacksonville was a growing city with many things to offer, perfect for raising a family and has great weather year-round," he says.

Dr. Silva is a Board Certified Endocrinologist and has been part of NEFEDA since 1994. He has been principal investigator for twelve privately funded clinical trials and served as sub-investigator for over seventy trials for new therapies for diabetes, adult growth hormone deficiency, diabetic nephropathy, impaired glucose tolerance and many more.

For the past fifteen years, Dr. Silva has also been actively involved in offering medical lectures to community physicians. He's also served as Chief of the Section of Endocrinology at Baptist Medical Center Downtown.

Being fully bi-lingual, Dr. Silva has the privilege of serving the Spanish speaking patients in our area through NEFEDA's locations in La Villa and Fleming Island.

Our 2012 Walk was a record breaking event, thanks to your contributions and support! Over 7,000 people joined JDRF on Walk day last year, raising over $640,000 for T1D research.

Please click here to view photos from the 2012 event.