More than 4,000 people are expected to turn out for the fourth annual Central Illinois Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation International “Walk to Cure Diabetes” in Peoria.

The walk on Sept. 7 at Glen Oak Park raises money for diabetes research through many special events and activities.

More than $330,000 was raised in 2007, so organizers have set the bar higher this year at $342,000.

Meredith Stach, special events coordinator for JDRF, said they usually just ask kids or their parents to send a letter to family and friends asking for donations, but fundraising has gotten more creative in recent years.

“We’ve seen bake sales, garage sales, craft sales and even some employees selling their company parking spaces,” Stach said.

She added there is no minimum required amount to give.

Stach said more than 800 people are already signed up for the walk, and they expect that number to double within the next week.

Those numbers include 96 walk teams from all over Central Illinois and as far as Quincy.

“It’s cool to see the kids from the rural areas who may be the only ones in their community with diabetes interacting with other kids who have it,” Stach said.

Twenty-four million Americans live with diabetes and its complications, and the disease kills one American every three minutes.

More than 15,000 kids in the United States are diagnosed with type 1 diabetes each year.

Stach said the walk is a chance for kids to realize they are not alone in their struggle.

“They really see it as one day where it’s OK to have it because everyone else around them does,” Stach added.

Stach said JDRF offers lots of support for diabetic children through mentor groups, peer-to-peer interaction and a pen pal system.

“The pen pals are matched up through similar interests and ages, and usually are two kids thousands of miles away from each other,” Stach said.

In addition to food and free activities, such as hair and face painting and a jumping gym, Lifescan, maker of blood glucose monitoring systems, will feature “Word In Your Hand” for the first time at the event.

“Kids write a word in their hands describing how they feel about diabetes and Lifescan takes a photo of it,” Stach said.

“They then add it to the hundreds of other hand photos they’ve collected and make videos or artwork out of it,” Stach added.

Diabetes costs Americans $132 billion a year in health care expenses.

Stach said insulin is only considered “life support,” not a cure.

“A cure still eludes us, but our day of fundraising sends a message to the kids and parents that we won’t stop working to find one,” Stach added.

Since starting the “Walk to Cure Diabetes” in 2005, JDRF has raised more than $900,000 in Peoria for diabetes research.

Registration for the Peoria walk is at 11:30 a.m., while entertainment starts at noon.

The actual walk is at 1 p.m.

For more information on donations or starting a team, contact Stach at (319) 393-3850 or mstach@jdrf.org

You can also sign up or donate online at www.jdrf.org.