Imagine living in a country where you could not afford to buy insulin for your child with type 1 diabetes?

I'm so lucky that I was born and live in Ireland. I can go to a chemist at any time and walk out with a month's supply of insulin, test strips and whatever else I need to live. Without paying a cent!

If I was born elsewhere that would not be the case. I would not be able to afford my insulin and I would not be here today.

Yesterday, I donated money that I had set aside to Spare A Rose and give a child with diabetes a chance at life for a year.

Spare a Rose, Save a Child is the brainchild of the Diabetes Online Community in North America. The idea being to take the typical “dozen roses,” so popular on Valentine’s Day, and just buy 11, save just one rose and donate to spare the life of a child.

The Spare a Rose, Save a Child campaign is directed at raising awareness and funds for the Life for a Child program, which is an International Diabetes Federation program aiming to take “contributions from donors go to established diabetes centres enabling them to provide the ongoing clinical care and diabetes education these children need to stay alive.”

The idea was to take the typical “dozen roses,” so popular on Valentine’s Day, and save just one rose to spare the life of a child. “Spare a Rose, Save a Child” is simple: buy one less rose this Valentine’s Day and share the value of that flower with a child with diabetes in the developing world. Your loved one at home still gets flowers and you both show some love to someone across the world who needs it. From Kerri Sparling, Sixuntilme

Please join me! Donate here.