Lynn resident Carlos Simon Valentin at Joslin Diabetes Center benefit with Luis Tiant

(L-R) Carlos Simon Valentin, Lynn resident and Joslin patient; Luis “El Tiante” Tiant; Javier Bellini, event co-chair; Lazaro Lopez, event co-chair; Alberto Vasallo III, producer/host at WHDH-TV and event emcee

Lynn resident Carlos Simon Valentin shared his touching story with a crowd of nearly 150 people, including special guest Luis “El Tiante” Tiant, at Joslin Diabetes Center’s fourth annual ritmos de salud benefit at the Artists for Humanity EpiCenter in South Boston. Valentin, a native of Puerto Rico, was diagnosed with diabetes at age 12 but did not seek treatment for many years, which caused his diabetes to advance and take a major toll on his body. He has been a Joslin patient for the last 5 years and credits Joslin and the doctors within its Latino Diabetes Initiative for giving him the tools needed to get his diabetes under control. This year’s event raised over $135,000 for Joslin Diabetes Center’s Latino Diabetes Initiative (LDI), which strives to improve the lives of Latinos affected by diabetes, or at risk for the disease, through culturally oriented patient care, education, outreach and research, as well as working to find a cure.