Sometimes in the midst of fundraisers and special events to support health-related causes every spring, the local stories of individuals and their families who must endure countless hardships to manage a chronic illness gets lost in all the hype.
The Spy wanted to get behind all this marketing and excitement to understand better full impact of a major disease on a family. Ken Mann, a local resident, and managing partner with Heritage Equity Partners volunteered to tell his family’s story of the impact of type one diabetes on his daughter, McKenna.
For ten years now, McKenna, Ken, and his wife Leslie have had to cope with this extraordinarily challenging childhood illness. It is a world medication, supplies, special diets, and an “all hands on deck” attention for the entire family. While McKenna has adjusted well to this routine, it has motivated Ken to become actively involved in organizations to help support research efforts to find a cure.
This year Ken is chairperson of the annual TourdeCure bike event in Talbot County as part of this effort. He is also the captain of the Team McKenna racing team that will participate this year.
For more information on local diabetes programs and services at Shore Health and the University of Maryland Diabetes and Endocrinology Center, please click here. For information on the TourdeCure, please click here
This video is approximately seven minutes in length
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