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Grace for the Cure: Diabetes Alert Service Dog for Gracie Sevilla – www.GracieSevilla.com

Hi:

In March 2018, our 4 year old daughter, Gracie Sevilla (now 5), was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes, an incurable, intense, auto-immune disease that inflicts mostly children in their grade school years; a disease whose cause is unknown and is not due to diet or family history, but rather genetic markers and environmental triggers which cause the Pancreas to no longer produce life saving Insulin (a hormone in the body) necessary for blood glucose production and functioning – both high and low levels of blood glucose cause diabetic ketoacidosis which leads to diabetic coma, swelling in the brain and then, death.

Our campaign goal for her is a Diabetes Alert Service Dog; a specially trained service animal that has the ability to quickly detect changes in her blood that could be life threatening. The dog then alerts the person with Diabetes and those around her, allowing time for treatment of both highs and lows.

We don’t currently have a dog and it makes perfect sense for our family pet to be specially trained to alert us of Gracie’s life-threatening highs and lows.

You can read about Gracie, Type 1 Diabetes, and how it has impacted our family in a recent article on her by Insulin Nation and also a more recent feature story in Inland Empire Sports & News .

Kendall Simmons, an all-time Pittsburgh Steelers great, recently tweeted out to Gracie as being an inspiration to all with Type 1 Diabetes.

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Gracie was also featured with her Ohio State Buckeyes Under Armour Flag Football League on Channel 2 & 9 news – Los Angeles – for not only being the youngest in the league, the only girl for that matter, but also the only Type 1 Diabetic in the league; wearing her Dexcom G6 under her shorts and on her thigh as she played.

You can read about her here .

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Type 1 Diabetes, not to be confused with adult onset Type 2 Diabetes, requires moment by moment, day to day treatment and left untreated, can be immediately fatal. Persons with Type 1 Diabetes require Insulin injections after every meal; especially those which contain carbohydrates, as well as finger pricks to check blood glucose levels. Continuous Glucose Monitoring Devices (CGM’s) lessen the need for finger pricks.

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Gracie receives multiple injections of Insulin daily after every meal and snack and one night time dose of a different type of Insulin (Lantus) which is long acting; periodic finger pricks and now wears a Dexcom G6 continuous glucose monitoring system that has a filament like catheter that inserts under the skin; continuously testing glucose levels and that which transmits a reading to our phones every 5 minutes and sounds alarms alerting us of dangerous highs and lows so that we may treat her high and low symptoms with Insulin or carbohydrate fluids or foods.

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The Dexcom g6 is an absolute blessing for us and a literal life-saver. Gracie’s mother, Melodie, fought with her Pediatrician and our insurance company to get the “non-essential” medical device which even with insurance, is extremely expensive (each sensor cost several hundred dollars and needs to be switched out every 10 days or sooner and the transmitter or “brain” is 3 times as expensive and also last a relatively short period of time). These components often fail well before their expiration and long waits and troubleshooting sessions with tech support; fights with the pharmacies and insurance companies, much less the Pediatrician, are common.

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DIABETIC ALERT DOG: Although the continuous glucose monitoring device (Dexcom G6) is essential to us (can’t imagine not having it after having had it), man-made technology fails and there is something much more reliable and would be such an amazing blessing to the entire family, especially little Gracie, who loves animals.

We don’t currently have a dog and a well-trained Diabetic Alert Dog makes all the sense in the world.

Properly trained, certified Diabetic Alert Dogs can alert of a life-threatening, impending high or low blood glucose level as much as 15 minutes sooner than a medical device and even a finger prick. God has designed these dogs with such an amazing keen seen of smell; instinct and loyalty for it’s owners that the dog will wake up or otherwise alert a sleeping parent or child to let them know that the blood glucose levels are rising dangerously fast or dropping dangerously low; such a loveable and reliable medical alert system to help strengthen what we already have and provide for just a little bit of peace of mind in the midst of what is a constant stressor and source of great anxiety.

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Gracie’s dad is a great provider for his family but in considering this newly learned option (Diabetic Alert Dog); factoring in our family’s gifts and talents and our no choice other than to accept this disease and meet it head on, we’ve decided to take this route to help raise not only funds to purchase a specially trained dog from a reputable and certified Diabetic Alert Dog organization, but also to raise awareness about this horrible disease; something we are committed to doing for the rest of our lives.

Diabetes Alert Service Dogs from reputable, certified, licensed trainers cost in the tens of thousands of dollars and most insurance companies do not cover the costs of diabetic alert dogs or service dogs in general, because their effectiveness has not yet been proven in scientific studies. Therefore, for the reasons stated above and for this reason, we invite you to join little Gracie in our “Grace for the Cure” fundraiser for a Diabetic Alert Dog for Gracie, and to raise T1D (Type 1 Diabetes) awareness.

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We believe that God can instantly heal Gracie and all who suffer and pray earnestly that He will. However, we know that in this life we shall suffer and take the good with the bad, praising Him unceasingly and remaining steadfast in our faith in Him. In the meantime, and in the midst of this fiery trial, He has been ever faithful and has blessed us in so many ways. It is our prayer that all who suffer and deal daily with this terrible disease will receive healing soon and that God will bless us all with a cure, and continue to fill us with His grace and mercy.

Until there is a cure for Type 1 Diabetes, there is Gracie, and if God wills, she shall have her furry companion soon enough while raising awareness, as we’ve learned so many no nothing, very little or are very misinformed about a very serious and life-threatening disease.

Grace for the Cure!

Our Amazing Grace!

 

https://www.gofundme.com/diabetic-alert-dog-for-gracie-grace-for-the-cure

www.GracieSevilla.com

www.GracefortheCure.org

www.GracieT1dSuperStar.org

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Gracie with  her mom (Melodie) and older brother Luke, walking for a Diabetes Cure at the JDRF One Walk event at Anaheim Stadium this year.

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Family and friends supporting Gracie and Team: GRACE FOR THE CURE!

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Gracie Sevilla, Type 1 Diabetic

Riverside Under Armour – Under the Lights Football: Gracie Sevilla & The Steelers – Type 1 Diabetes

Riverside Under Armour – Under the Lights Football Team: Gracie Sevilla – Type 1 Diabetic

 

 

April 9, 2019

Riverside Under Armour – Under the Lights: K-2 Division Steelers and Gracie Sevilla – Type 1 Diabetic Football Player

For Immediate Release

On Friday, April 12, 2019, the Riverside Under Armour – Under the Lights K-2 Flag Football Team – the Steelers (3-0), will be playing a double-header against the also undefeated Raiders, then against the 1-2 Rams. The game against the Raiders is a league showcase game  that pits two dynamic offenses and lock down defenses against one another for first place in the league and the inside track to play in the National Championship Game at UCLA in May.

The Riverside Steelers recently beat the Menifee Raiders by a score 20-8 with Riverside Quarterback, Luke Sevilla, recording an epic game with 3 interceptions at Safety; one was a pick 6.

Luke also was 5/6 passing with a touchdown pass and had many long gains at running back.

Guillermo Villarreal, had a strong game on defense with 6 stops.

Last week, the Steelers fell behind two (2) scores against the Riverside Seahawks, until Luke Sevilla, playing running back and safety, accounted for 3 touchdowns to bring the team to an 18-13 victory.

The Steelers team features 5 returning members from last years Championship game squad: Luke Sevilla, Gracie Sevilla, Jayden Sage, Guillermo Villarreal, & Noah Corona.

The Steelers have added 3 dynamic players to their mix this year: Sese Tuolioa, Eden Esau and Zane Sedoris – increasing their speed and skill exponentially.

Sese Tuolioa, is the 6 year-old brother of Lokeni and Leni Tuolioa; starting linebackers for the UCLA Bruins, and Lemusu Toailoa; starting Linebacker for the Sacramento State Hornets.

The UCLA tandem helped out at practice; bringing their friends and teammates, and were on the sidelines helping Head Coach, Tommy Sevilla at the Menifee showcase game.

Unique to the Riverside Under the Lights Flag Football League is Receiver, Running Back and Defensive End, Gracie Sevilla, the only girl in the league, the youngest player in the league (5) and a Type 1 Diabetic, recently diagnosed last year.

Type 1 Diabetes is an incurable auto-immune disease that affects mostly children from 4 years old and rarely strikes adults. Type 1 Diabetes is thought to be triggered by viruses/illnesses common to school aged children (RotoVirus, Foot and Mouth, etc) who have the genetic markers of Type 1 Diabetes, which causes the Pancreas to fight against its own beta cells and shut down partially, then entirely, rendering the Pancreas useless to produce life saving Insulin.

Gracie, literally needs Insulin Shots to stay alive and receives as many as 10 per day.

Gracie, whose blood glucose levels have dipped to deadly levels (32 mg/dl) or has risen to deadly levels (600 + mg/dl), plays with a continuous glucose monitoring device affixed to her thigh that sends a reading to her dad, mom and school teachers & nurses (River Springs Magnolia Center in Riverside) cell phone app, alerting them of both highs and lows.

The device is a Dexcom G6 and her father, Tommy Sevilla, the teams head coach of two years, keeps the receiver in his pocket as he coaches the kids; including Gracie, on the playing field.

Gracie was recently featured in Insulin Nation and on Channel 2 & 9 news – Los Angeles affiliates, regarding her Type 1 Diabetes and athletic prowess; Gracie also excels in Baseball, Soccer and Basketball. She currently stars for the Jurupa Valley Single A – Angels Baseball Team as an infielder and power hitter.

As a soccer player, Gracie was the leading scorer on her Riverside Parks & Recreation team and, as a Basketball Player, she recently made a long shot from the baseline area of the adult basketball court in a Parks & Recreation game at Reid Park.

Gracie Sevilla has a website in development: https://GracieSevilla.com  , which links to her GoFundMe page where she is raising Type 1 Diabetes awareness and also money for a Diabetic Alert Dog.

Grace for the Cure, is the name of the organization founded by Gracie’s dad, to bring awareness to Type 1 Diabetes.

#GracefortheCure

Diabetic Alert Dogs are specially trained dogs that alert the affected person and those around them of impending highs and lows, a full 15 minutes before a CGM like the Dexcom G6 or other man-made technologies, and can even sense and alert from many miles away when they are away from their owners; such as when Gracie is in school.

Friday night double-header will be played at Riverside’s Arlington High School at 6:00 pm (Raiders) and 8:00 pm (Seahawks).

For inquiries, please contact:

Tommy Sevilla (951) 289-1710
Head Coach, Under Armour Steelers

https://sevillalocalmedia.com

Sevilla Local Media – Grace for the Cure #graceforthecure

Gracie Sevilla: Child with T1D Commits Whole Family to Care

This article appears in www.InsulinNation.com

Child with T1D Commits Whole Family to Care

The first months of new T1D care are scary, all-consuming and completely change family dynamics

Tommy and Melodie Sevilla share the story of their T1D daughter Gracie’s diagnosis, treatment, and achievement.

“Gracie’s leg hurt again.  It happened often. What could a little girl be doing to hurt her leg?  Then she was thirsty and listless. Finally, we looked up her symptoms on the web and took her to the pediatrician.  We felt so guilty when we confirmed that she had T1D. She had been suffering, and we didn’t understand.

Diagnosed with T1D in March 2018, Gracie was four-years-old, weighed 42 pounds, wore size 4 clothes and looked exhausted. Today, Gracie weighs 55 pounds, wears size 7, clothes, and stars in the Riverside/Corona Under Armour flag football league.

MelodieThose first days, I was scared.  I was in mourning for my child who was still alive, but I knew she would no longer have a normal life.  I feared that everything for her would be different and harder.

Learning how to care for her consumed us.  How to count carbs, measure her blood glucose, and give her injections.  It was like having a baby again. We were up at night checking frequently, living in fear, never quite sure we knew what to do.

TommyI didn’t know there were two types of diabetes.  I didn’t know about Type 1 Diabetes. I had only heard of Type 2 Diabetes.  I learned as much as I could as quickly as I could. I was ashamed to learn how little I knew and shocked at how many families were raising children with Type 1 Diabetes.

It took months to gain confidence in our ability to care for Gracie. Getting rid of soda was easy.  It was much harder to learn when to use fast acting versus slow acting insulin, or to judge the impact on her blood glucose of protein and exercise.

Normalcy is hard to come by.  Our marriage changed. Little things no longer mattered.  Dealing with the big thing required teamwork and support. Gracie’s T1D became a full-time job for the whole family.

TommyWe got a Dexcom G6 CGM for Gracie after five months.  It has been a tremendous help. Both Melodie and I have the Dexcom app on our phones.  I have the alarms set at 100 and 260 because I want some warning when I am coaching Gracie on her football team.  Melodie has her alarms set at 80 and 275.

We don’t plan to get a pump.  Kids can be cruel, and we don’t want Gracie to stand out too much from her friends.  She wears her Dexcom on her leg, so it is under her shorts. We plan to get an alert dog next.

MelodieGracie started Kindergarten this fall.  Picking a school for her was surprisingly hard.  Some schools did not comprehend the care a T1D child requires.  The school we chose had one staff member and the spouse of a staff member each with T1D. They have been amazing; caring and loving Gracie as their own.

I am careful about the carbs in Gracie’s school snacks — 3-5 carbs in her morning snack and 12-15 carbs in her afternoon snack at 1 PM.  Her snacks are only slow carbs such as jerky and nuts.

I prepare her school lunch, but I give her a lot of choice in what to eat because she gets Novolog with lunch.   I want her food to be normal kid-food, so she fits in with her friends.

TommyOn weekend game days, we also give her a 12-15 carb snack at 1 PM, so she is ready to play at 5 PM.  It is hot in Southern California, so she burns glucose quickly. If she gets low, we use Gatorade Chews or something similar. Gracie was the only girl and the youngest player in our Under Armour Flag Football League this Fall.  She was also the only child with T1D.

Now that Gracie is healthy again, she also excels at soccer, baseball and basketball, roller skating and singing Christian Worship Music. Phil Wickham is her favorite artist and “Amazing Grace” her favorite song by him; a song that causes me to cry every time I hear it.

MelodieI feel guilty about the impact Gracie’s T1D care has had on her brother and sister.  Too often, their lives and desires have taken a back seat due to Gracie having a hard night or something else.  Both are super serious about Gracie’s care. I think our whole family has become more serious as we each cope and help and work together.

I want our pediatrician, and all others across the country, to have a poster in her office about T1D symptoms.  No one should be as clueless as we were.

TommyGracie has a website in development that is called “Grace for the Cure” and her URL is: https://GracieT1dSuperStar.org. We are determined to raise awareness about T1D; particularly identifying the symptoms to prevent death and promote early diagnosis, and to share our experiences as persons living alongside T1D.”

Life challenges each of us to be brave in different ways. Tommy, Melodie, and their children are courageous people. They show us how best to respond to the challenge that life presented them.

Up for the Challenge, Down for the Cause: Grace for the Cure!

Fundraising to End Type 1 Diabetes

Team “Grace for the Cure” is Up for the Challenge and Down for the Cause!

 

 

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Support Team Gracie Sevilla

 

 

Support Team Grace for the Cure!

 

Our team is participating in walks to end type 1 diabetes (T1D). The JDRF One Walk is one of many that we will participate in this year and we seek to also promote and support other reputable organizations, as well.

 

What’s in the World is Going On with Gracie?!

 

In March of 2018, our little Gracie was not her normal self. Her dad noticed her waking up several night in a row, late at night, to use the restroom and asking for something to drink as she was always “very thirsty”. Knowing a little something about Diabetes, her dad feared the worse and began to research and learn what he had been already fearing. He sent a link to his wife, who was fast asleep at the time and she was in denial. As the weekend approached, they knew they had to make an appointment with the doctor. Gracie’s Mom Melodie, was too distraught to call her Husband Tommy that morning, so one of his daughters had to, telling him to get down to the doctor’s office immediately, as it was certain Gracie was now a Type 1 Diabetic and they all needed to be trained to manage this deadly, life-long illness.

 

“It was not because of his sins or his parents’ sins,” Jesus answered. “This happened so the power of God could be seen in him.

John 9:3

 

So many questions were asked and so much was immediately learned; Type 1 Diabetes is not caused by eating too many sweets, a poor diet or being obese, but is rather an Autoimmune Disease whereby the Insulin producing pancreas shuts down for one reason or another, mostly likely the latent effects of having been afflicted with a virus long, or not long ago.

 

 

When you have T1D, your body stops producing insulin—a hormone essential to turning food into energy. Managing the disease is a constant struggle that involves monitoring your blood-sugar level, administering insulin, and carefully balancing these insulin doses with your eating and activity just to stay alive.

 

 

Gracie Sevilla – Type 1 Super Star!

We live by faith in Jesus Christ and lean not upon our own understanding, but rather trust Him in all things. Although sometimes it’s so much easier said then done, ultimately, we trust in Him and love Him so much. This being said, he’s blessed Gracie’s dad as a provider for his family and also with great determination and zeal for good things and causes; we feel ashamed at not knowing the struggles that so many dealt with before this came into our lives and we’re determined to overcome this daily with joy and live lives as normal as possible, using our talents and resources to the glory of God the Father; helping as many as possible and also helping to fund a cure.

Even with insurance this is an exceedingly expensive disease but where God guides, God provides and if we can bring awareness and also give to others in need like we have, awesome!

 

 

 

With T1D there are no days off and there is no cure. But there is hope.

 

 

 

YOU CAN HELP TOO!

Donate Directly to the Team and to Gracie and Her Needs

 

We trust in God and do not rely upon anyone but Him but we know full and well he works through others through prayers and giving from their hearts. Even as He has always supplied our needs abundantly and faithfully, there are those who love Gracie and know the struggle of this disease and want to help and therefore, want to donate to the Team itself, for Type 1 Diabetes extraordinary needs, in addition to or in place of the organizations that we support. For this reason, we have created donation buttons and the means to support, below.

 

 

However, know that if God hears your prayers, we cherish your prayers MOSTLY, but like some want to help Team Grace for the Cure monetarily, for this event and others upcoming, your gift on this site will:

Go directly to her special fund for events and other extraordinary needs; such needs are things like:

  • Attending special camps for Kids with Type 1 Diabetes, where the staff are either Type 1 themselves or highly trained and equipped. Gracie, only recently met another kid with Type 1 Diabetes in July; he, too, had a Dexcom g6 monitoring device, and it’s important for her to feel like she’s not alone, hence, our participation in these events organizing support teams and such;
  • 24 hour Glucose monitoring (Dexcom g6 sensors, for example, cost about $500 each and last only 10 days). Although we’ve been approved and have paid for a Dexcom g6 and have finally gotten insurance to cover it, there are always issues, limited supplies and red tape, forcing a lot of high, out of pocket expenditures;
  • Glucose Pump (something we are considering at the moment);
  • A specially trained Diabetic alert (service) dog that we are strongly considering at the moment. These dogs are specially trained and raised as pups in just a few places across the country and range from $10,000 and up. They can literally alert a glucose level drop or spike 15 minutes before it happens.

Things like this.

 

 

A Puppy for Gracie?

 

Your gift will go toward these things and will also go toward funding self-promoted future events, as we use our talents and resources to fight this disease to the benefit of ALL who suffer, especially the kids, with Gracie’s upcoming website (below). The direct gifts in the future will be tax-deductible:

www.GracieT1dSuperStar.org

You may donate using the Pay Pal buttons below, which will give you the option of paying by credit card or Pay Pal at checkout. If you’d like to increase the donation, simply change the quantity of the item at check out.

We thank you for your time and consideration and support.

 

 

$20 Donation to Help Fund Team: Grace for the Cure

$50 Donation to Help Fund Team: Grace for the Cure

$75 Donation to Help Fund Team: Grace for the Cure

$100 Donation to Help Fund Team: Grace for the Cure

 

 

To give directly to the JDRF, simply click on the link below!

Contact: sevillalocalmedia@gmail.com