Northbrook Boy Continues Quest for Diabetes Awareness

Jared Kuper is not your typical eighth grader.

The Northbrook Junior High School student has been living with diabetes since he was first diagnosed in 2009, but that isn’t what makes him unique. Faced with the daily struggles of the disease on top of the everyday stress that goes along with being a young teenager, Kuper still finds time - and a lot of it - to make sure the world knows about the disease and has accomplished quite a bit in terms of making life a bit easier for others suffering from it.

“When I was diagnosed, it wasn’t caught quickly enough so I was in and out of a come all the time and ended up in the ICU for about a week,” says Kuper, who was 8 at the time. “I was really confused because I didn’t understand a lot about diabetes and how hard it is to manage.”

But that would soon change, as Kuper has since become one of the strongest advocates for diabetes awareness - meeting with legislators, pushing laws and in a way becoming the face of change when it comes to the disease’s perception. All this before he has even started high school.

“The education piece was needed,” he said of when he was first diagnosed. “People need to see that it isn’t just another disease. If they can see the troubles it causes one 9-year-old boy, it’s important to put a story behind it.”

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Among the difficulties are that Kuper has to test his blood sugar up to 15 times a day and use an insulin pump to have an injection every hour. If the pump malfunctions, more worries are obviously on the way.

“I have to have my parents check my blood sugar twice now in the middle of the night, as well as lots during the day, but overall it’s a much better way of managing my diabetes,” Kuper notes on his website, “Discovering Diabetes with Jared Kuper.” “They say it will get easier as I get older. All I know is that there are lots of cool things to help with the diabetes and I am very hopeful for a cure.”

Kuper notes the differences between Type 1 and Type 2 Diabetes and provides resources through the site. 

In 2010, Kuper was named one of two Youth Ambassadors for the ADA for Illinois and Northern Indiana and has since made three trips to Washington D.C. to discuss his cause with Congressional and Senate representatives.

“Senator (Mark) Kirk has been a supporter since the beginning,” Kuper says. “I see him almost every time I go out there. I’ve noticed that more and more people know about it and how it affects people every time I’m there.”

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In addition to Kirk, Kuper met with U.S. Senator Dick Durbin and a representative for 10th District Congressman Robert Dold in addition to other representatives nationwide.

In Illinois, Kuper, at age 9, was a vocal part of the passage of the Safe at School Act - which protects him and other students with the disease at school.

Kuper has since worked on some of the specifics of the law, making sure its being followed in the state and being a part of the campaign to make it a federal law. He continues to work with the American Diabetes Association as their Youth Action Council member and travels the United States educating and raising awareness.

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He also speaks about the issue in front of large and often prominent groups, said Laura Kuper, his mother.

“He has spoken for Nordstrom’s, Walgreen’s and others,” Laura said. “(Chicago Bears chairman) George McCaskey came to NBJH and spoke with him once to help educate people. He isn’t shy at all.”

“But he’s not about drawing names around - he’s about educating. He doesn’t want the praise. He has friends in high places but that’s not his goal,” she continued.

Locally, support for Kuper is evident at the yearly diabetes walk in Buffalo Grove, which is set for Saturday, September 19 at Didier Farms this year. His two sisters, students at Glenbrook North High School - where he will begin in the fall, has been vocal supporters of his at the high school already, and will continue as all three will be enrolled there next year.

Kuper, of course, will continue his mission of diabetes education whether its on Capitol Hill or the halls of GBN.

“I just really want to educate any way I can,” he said.

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