Inspired to help find a cure for juvenile diabetes, 13-year-old Michelle Bogi wrote a letter about what it’s like living with the disease. That letter earned her the opportunity to represent Michigan this month at a U.S. Senate hearing in Washington, D.C.

“I decided to write the letter because I really want to make a difference,” said Michelle, a middle school student at Spring Lake. “I want to show Congress that diabetes is not just a disease.”

And it isn’t. According to Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, more than 40 children are diagnosed each day with juvenile diabetes and must rely on daily insulin injections to stay alive.

JDRF’s Children’s Congress gives kids ages 4 to 17 the opportunity to educate members of Congress about their struggles living with the disease. This year, 150 delegates, along with Mary Tyler Moore, JDRF’s international chairman, will make up the sixth delegation to visit the U.S. Capitol in an effort to raise awareness and to ask for funding.

The hope for a cure is what motivates Michelle. Besides wearing an insulin pump, the teenager has to watch her diet, limit her activities and test her blood sugar 10 to 14 times day and night.

“When I’m at a sleepover, I have to wake myself up, check it, then call my parents to discuss the results. It’s such a big part of my life,” said Michelle, whose beautiful smile and good humor belie her struggle. “All you might see is a pump and you think it’s not that bad. But inside it’s destroying me.”

Despite her young age, Michelle is no stranger to working for a cause. She’s an ambassador at her school, has organized a JDRF fundraising dance, attends conventions on diabetes, and helps care for a young toddler with diabetes. For her, the trip to Washington, D.C., is more than a chance to be heard.

“I look forward to meeting other kids like me,” she said.

For more information on Children’s Congress and the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation, go to www.Jdrf.org.