Age: 11
Age at T1D diagnosis: 1

Maya’s bringing her T1D advocacy to the United States. As a poster child for JDRF in her home country of Israel, she has promoted T1D awareness since she was young, appearing in ads and a fundraising commercial, and giving an interview on a prime-time talk show. Maya’s recent efforts have had an impact on a local level. She has taught her classmates and teachers about T1D, and started a fundraiser at school at which students painted masks, then sold them to their parents to raise funds for JDRF.

Today, she hopes to raise the stakes. “I’m proud and happy to represent Israel at JDRF Children’s Congress. I hope to be able to help raise money for JDRF to fund research in the United States and then to come back and help do the same in Israel.”