The U.S. business group of Sun Life Financial, an international financial services organization based in Wellesley, Mass., is working with the American Diabetes Association on programs to help cure and prevent diabetes as part of American Diabetes Month in November, Sun Life announced Tuesday.
Sun Life will work with the association in three of its local markets on a series of American Diabetes Month events emphasizing the impact the disease has on people’s lives.
Sun Life will present the American Diabetes Month program, America Gets Cooking to Stop Diabetes; co-produce interactive cooking demonstrations led by nationally known chefs in Chicago and Philadelphia, and develop a consumer engagement extension that drives awareness and fundraising for the association’s “Step Out: Walk to Stop Diabetes” event in Los Angeles.
“Nearly 30 million children and adults in America are afflicted by diabetes, with an estimated annual total national cost of $245 billion, and as many as one in three American adults will have the disease in 2050 unless we take steps to stop it,” says Dan Fishbein, president, Sun Life Financial U.S. “Sun Life’s alliance with the association, the country’s leading organization dedicated to preventing and curing diabetes, presents a signature opportunity for us to help raise awareness of the risk factors and societal and economic impacts associated with diabetes and provide practical tools and information to help people lead healthier lifestyles.”
Globally, Sun Life has committed $11 million to the cause. Near its U.S. headquarters in Wellesley, Mass., Sun Life will team up with the Boston Celtics on an American Diabetes Month fundraising campaign and a season-long, diabetes prevention program to benefit Greater Boston YMCA’s Diabetes Prevention Program.