What do you call the moment when your heart is full of love, your brain is full of new information, and your body feels like it needs to sleep for 15 days straight? Friends for Life! The Children with Diabetes team has just returned from our Spring 2025 regional conference in Arlington, Virginia. With over 250 attendees (including sponsors and exhibitors), the Renaissance Arlington Capital View was the perfect location for our weekend diabetes recharge event. Over the weekend, we welcomed 14 scholarship families into our great big global diabetes family. From morning coffee to evening karaoke, this weekend was one for the memory books. So, grab your sugar-free Fruit Punch or your Country Time Lemonade, and join me for a recap on FFL Arlington!

On Friday, March 7, the CWD team welcomed 230 attendees to one of the best weekends of the year—Friends for Life, Arlington. As families lined up to receive their green and orange wristbands at registration, over 17 exhibitors prepared our exhibit hall with information about their companies and staged their tables with exciting giveaways and mementos of the weekend. After completing registration and grabbing their blue conference t-shirts, attendees spent the evening snacking on finger foods and chatting with sponsors and exhibitors about the latest and greatest in diabetes technologies and advancements. Guests had a chance to visit with emerging entrepreneurs in the diabetes field and buy some amazing sweatshirts or get a book signed by authors who have written books about diabetes straight from the heart. We learned about diabetes advocacy and the importance of screening for type 1. The evening concluded with hugs in the hallways and promises to meet new friends for breakfast the next morning.

On Saturday, March 8,, official conference programming kicked off with our Opening Keynote presentation by Ashlyn Mills and Jeremy Salko. Ashlyn and Jeremy are both “green bands” who shared not only 26.2 miles on the racecourse but also their diabetes with the entire FFL community as they completed the Walt Disney World Marathon in January. They reminded us that diabetes is a marathon and not a sprint and is best done when in the company of our friends for life. During the day, attendees spent time in educational programming carefully crafted for adults and for youth participants consistent with the ADA and ISPAD guidelines. After sharing several meals and snack breaks, participants capped off the evening with our Fiffle social, featuring karaoke and a game night! We went to bed with a song in our hearts and a hope that the next day would be even more full of precious memories.

On Sunday, March 9, we continued with curated educational content for adult and youth participants. Over a fiesta-like taco luncheon, we made plans to connect once the conference concluded and exchanged phone numbers and social media links. Our Closing Keynote session by Dr. Kenneth Moritsugu, MD, MPH, FACPM, Rear Admiral, USPHS (Retired), was just the inspiration that we needed to close this chapter on our diabetes journey together in Arlington. As the final boxes of conference supplies were taped shut and loaded into the truck to head back to our storage units in Orlando, we gave our final hugs to our new friends who had become instant family. Suddenly, the conference space became quiet, and all that was left were the memories of our time together.

Thank you to the individuals and families with type 1 who chose to spend your weekend with us in Arlington. The weekend wouldn’t have been as successful as it was without the help of our amazing team of volunteers who are the quiet heroes behind the scenes who make the magic of Friends for Life. We are so appreciative of the support from our sponsors and our exhibitors who spend the weekend helping to educate, inspire, and enhance the lives of those living with type 1 diabetes. This weekend was one for the camera rolls and the memory books.

Until there’s a cure, there’s Friends for Life.

See you in Orlando.