Age: 9
Age at T1D diagnosis: 5

Kennedy is a blue ribbon–winning member of 4–H, a swim team member and an aspiring gymnast. She is also an experienced advocate for T1D research, having participated in the JDRF Promise to Remember Me campaign and visiting with her Congressmen and Senators, regularly speaking to her class about what it means to live with T1D, and raising funds for her JDRF Walk team with family, friends and classmates. For the last two years, she’s even woken up at 4 a.m. to appear on TV to promote the annual JDRF Starlight Snowshoe Benefit. Kennedy loves animals—she has a dog named Daisy and two cats—and hopes to become a veterinarian or a lawyer. Kennedy is attending JDRF Children’s Congress to share her hope for a cure for T1D with lawmakers and other delegates.