News Article

Edison State Goes Blue for World Diabetes Day

Nov 10, 2011

November 9, 2011

Blue Lights Beam at Edison State for World Diabetes Day

Edison State College is lighting up in honor of World Diabetes Day.

For the third year, the college will join iconic landmarks around the globe such as the Burgdorf Castle in Switzerland and the Hopewell Centre in Hong Kong as blue beacons of hope for the 246 million people worldwide with diabetes.

Beginning this weekend, Edison State College will light up three campus locations in blue. In Punta Gorda, the I-75 sign will go ‘blue’ for the weekend through Monday night. The Barbara B. Mann Performing Arts Hall in Fort Myers will shine ‘blue’ for the same duration. Also, the entry sign at the Collier Campus will turn ‘blue’ at Rattlesnake Hammock Road. 

World Diabetes Day, which is Monday, Nov. 14, recognizes diabetes as a global epidemic and crises. If current trends continue, one out of three U. S. adults will have diabetes by 2050, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

 “The rate of people passing away from complications with diabetes is too high,” said Gina Dengler, Development Coordinator for Florida Suncoast Chapter-JDRF. “It’s important that we remind people about those suffering from this disease. It’s about educating the community about something we don’t talk enough about.”

Edison State College joins the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF) in commemorating World Diabetes Day to raise awareness of the worldwide diabetes epidemic. 

The Scope of Diabetes

• Nearly 26 million Americans have diabetes (8.3 percent of the population).
  Diagnosed: 18.8 million
  Undiagnosed: 7 million
• As many as three million Americans may have type 1 diabetes.
• Diabetes currently affects 285 million people worldwide and is expected to affect 435 million by 2030.
• In the U.S., a new case of diabetes is diagnosed every 30 seconds; more than 1.9 million people are diagnosed each year.

Source: Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation

For more information contact Gina Dengler, Development Coordinator for Florida Suncoast Chapter - JDRF at (239) 591-2825.

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Celebrating nearly 50 years of excellence, Edison State College is Southwest Florida’s largest, most accessible and most affordable institution of higher education. Proud to be tobacco-free, Edison State serves more than 25,000 students per year in five counties and online.  For more information please visit www.edison.edu.
 
Media Contact: Francesca Donlan (239) 433-6917 or email at fdonlan@edison.edu

Last Updated: November 10, 2011