The Helmsley Charitable Trust and the Creation of the T1D Exchange
The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust – www.helmsleytrust.org – was established in 1999 as a continuation of the Helmsleys’ generous giving throughout their lifetimes. As part of the Trust’s major focus on health and medical research, the Helmsley Type 1 Diabetes (T1D) Program was launched in 2009 with the goal of dramatically advancing treatment and care for people living with type 1 diabetes. David Panzirer, Leona Helmsley’s grandson and a Trustee, is the driving force behind the T1D Program based on his personal connection to the disease: one of his daughters was diagnosed with the condition in 2006.
The Helmsley T1D Program is led by veteran type 1 diabetes program director, Dana Ball, who joined the Trust in 2008. Dana worked closely with co-founder Marie Schiller, from the Boston-based firm, Health Advances, to develop the T1D Exchange concept: an integrated model that includes a clinic-based registry, a BioBank and a patient community – Glu. The two solicited significant input from diverse stakeholders in the type 1 diabetes community—including government, industry, academia, and the nonprofit sector—to create this new model for conducting and funding type 1 diabetes research. They also identified the Jaeb Center for Research, led by Dr. Roy Beck, as the right partner to develop the T1D Exchange through a three-year, $26 million grant (link to press release).
Today, the four founders of the Exchange—David Panzirer, Dana Ball, Roy Beck and Marie Schiller— continue to work closely with the T1D Exchange staff and guide the T1D Exchange vision as members of the T1D Exchange Executive Committee.