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PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Kendra Oke, Diabetes Advocate and Peer Diabetes Educator from Crossover Live TV with Kendra
5:37:54
ยท
123 sec
Kendra Oke, a diabetes advocate and peer educator, shared her personal experience with diabetes and the impact of the HealthPeople program on her life. She emphasized the need for funding to continue their life-saving work in diabetes education and support.
- Oke has been diabetic for 29 years and lost both parents to diabetes-related complications
- She credits HealthPeople and Chris Norwood for saving her life, improving her A1C from 11 to 6.1
- Oke stressed the importance of knowing one's numbers and the reality of depression among diabetics
Kendra Oke
5:37:54
Good afternoon, counsel, and I appreciate you hearing us today.
5:37:58
My name is Kendra Oge.
5:37:59
I am Crossover Television Live with Kendra and also Kendra's Crossover Inc.
5:38:06
And the reason that I'm here today alongside Chris Norwood is because I am that product of a diabetic.
5:38:12
I'm a diabetic for twenty nine years.
5:38:15
I lost my mother to diabetes.
5:38:16
She died of kidney failure and heart attack when she was 64 a few years ago.
5:38:22
Ten years ago then I joined Health People and I was at the most depressing state of my life, losing my mother to diabetes.
5:38:31
I lost my dad to diabetes when he was very young, in his 40s.
5:38:35
The same thing, kidney failure.
5:38:37
And, my my thought was I don't want to lose I don't want to lose, you know, my life, you know, my son will have no one, you know, to kidney failure.
5:38:46
Right now, I'm going blind in my right eye and by the grace of God I came to Chris Norwood ten years ago.
5:38:52
I'm not even reading this.
5:38:53
I came to Chris Norwood ten years ago to help people and she saved my life, you know.
5:39:00
Depression is very surreal for us with diabetics.
5:39:04
Doctor.
5:39:04
Dre said food addict.
5:39:06
That is very surreal.
5:39:07
What person wakes up and just eats and they know they're going to go blind, they're going to lose their kidneys.
5:39:12
You know, my son is an autistic child that has epilepsy and Lennox Gastaut syndrome.
5:39:18
I'm a single parent.
5:39:19
He needs me.
5:39:20
So my thing is you know know your numbers.
5:39:24
My number right now is 141.
5:39:26
My A1C when I came to HealthPeople was 11.
5:39:30
My A1C is 6.1.
5:39:33
I teach DSNP.
5:39:35
I save lives every day and this is important.
5:39:38
We need funding.
5:39:39
We've been asking city council.
5:39:41
I was here six years ago at the same place.
5:39:45
You know how you all have Facebook, right?
5:39:47
And you know how you get the memories?
5:39:48
Well my memory was me testifying six years ago and still nothing.
5:39:53
This program saved my life.
5:39:55
Please give us funding.
Lynn Schulman
5:39:57
I appreciate everything that you said.