The folks on Capital Hill are just as star-struck as the rest of us, when a famous celebrity is in their midst.  This certainly proved to be the case on June 23, when pop sensation Nick Jonas headed to Washington to ask for more funding for juvenile diabetes research.  Jonas, the youngest of three-member boy band, the Jonas Brothers, was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes in 2005.  He made his diagnosis public during a 2007 performance at a fundraiser for the Diabetes Research Institute.

Jonas was scheduled to testify during a hearing the following day of the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee, meeting to discuss federal funding for diabetes research.  Other celebrities giving testimonials before the committee were world champion, Sugar Ray Leonard, said to be one of the best boxers of all time, and highly acclaimed actress, Mary Tyler Moore.  Moore, who has type 1 diabetes, serves as International Chairman of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and Leonard is an outspoken advocate for diabetes research and education.  He frequently testifies of the emotional and financial strain children face when growing up with a diabetic parent, as Leonard’s father was.

Including Jonas as a part of the discussion, diabetes advocates are hoping to draw the attention of the younger generation, many of whom consider diabetes a disease of old age.  He and his brothers founded the Change for the Children Foundation, an organization that provides financial support to charitable programs that motivate and inspire children of adversity.  One such charity is the American Diabetes Association’s Diabetes Camp.