Fighters battle it out for Type 1 diabetes
JACKSON, Tenn. — Fighters battled it out in the ring to help children.
The first rule of fight club is you do not talk about fight club, usually, but this case is different because members of these fight clubs say they’re fighting for a cure.
“Counting everything I eat, counting up the amount of insulin I have to give at every meal, and just always having to balance my sugar is very difficult,” said Addison Coleman, who has Type 1 diabetes. “Some days it gets tiring, and you just don’t want to do it, but you know in order to live, you have to do it.”
19-year-old Coleman was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at 13 and says it’s been challenging ever since.
“I can’t just casually work out without knowing what my blood sugar is. I can’t just casually eat a pack of Oreos. I can’t just eat whatever I want without knowing what’s going on. I always have to be alert,” Coleman said.
He’s excited to see the huge turnout of people fighting for him and other young people with type one diabetes.
Hundreds of people filled the Carl Perkins Civic Center for the fourth annual Black Tie and Boxing event Saturday night.
“The concept is a little different, but we feel like it is very fitting for what we’re going for here, which is funding research for a cure of type one diabetes, so we are fighting for a cure,” said chairwoman for the event, Rachel Ryan.
Every punch thrown goes back to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, which helps find a cure for kids like Coleman and so many others.
Business owner and fighter Jerry Corley fought in the match for the first time and says he’s proud of his fight club for raising just over $26,000 for the foundation.
“We had a special opportunity to put a group of guys together to form the Black Tie Fight Club, which, as we talked about already, you’re not supposed to talk about, but we can talk about it because we’ve raised a lot of money for the JDRF,” Corley said.
He says he’s excited for this opportunity to fight for kids with diabetes.
“That’s not chosen. It’s not because of diet; it’s not because of lack of exercise. These kids are born with it,” Corley said.
As hard as it is for those with Type 1 diabetes, Coleman says that he’s especially thankful for his mother’s support.
“She’s helped me see the hope that one day there will be a cure,” Coleman said.
Organizers say they expect to raise at least $165,000 for the JDRF.
According to the JDRF, 1.25 million Americans have type-one diabetes.
