[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 53 (Thursday, May 2, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S3840-S3841]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          HONORING JIM McCORD

 Mr. BUNNING. Mr. President, today I pay tribute to Jim McCord 
of Fort Thomas, KY. Yesterday in San Diego, Mr. McCord officially began 
his 3,000-mile, 6-month journey in an effort to educate the American 
people about the ill effects of diabetes. On this cross-country jog, 
Mr. McCord will run 20 miles a day for the first 2 months, then 25 
miles, then 30, resting every third day until he reaches Washington, DC 
on October 30.
  Since the time she was just 9 years old, Maggie McCord, Jim McCord's 
daughter, has suffered from Type I diabetes. For 11 years now, Maggie 
has

[[Page S3841]]

given herself three to five shots a day. Having diabetes also puts 
Maggie at a much higher risk for heart attacks, strokes, vision loss 
and limb amputation. Furthermore, she has a 67 percent chance of dying 
before the age of 55. In sharing in these day-to-day battles with his 
daughter, Jim McCord has learned countless facts about diabetes and has 
come to realize just how little the American public knows about this 
deadly disease. Sixteen million Americans are currently suffering from 
diabetes. Every year, diabetes kills about 68,400 individuals. This 
figure is slightly higher than the victims of breast cancer and AIDS 
combined. These and many other numbers are the reason why Jim McCord 
sold his house in Fort Thomas, bought a camper, put his real-estate 
career on hold and recruited friends to accompany him on his quest. 
This journey will not be about raising money for diabetes but raising 
public awareness. Mr. McCord's mission is to help this Nation 
understand diabetes and the effects it has on millions of Americans. If 
he can first educate the public, he can then empower them with a sense 
of belonging and unite them in his mission.
  I applaud Mr. McCord for his devotion to family and his devotion to 
the health of this great Nation. Diabetes is a truly terrible disease 
that affects households from Kentucky to California. Sometimes, to 
obtain our goals, we must make sacrifices. Jim McCord has sacrificed 
his home and career, but in the end, he will have made a difference 
from coast-to-coast.

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