Last month proved to be one of the most exciting months of the year here at JDRF Advocacy. December ended up being the month in which the Special Diabetes Program was renewed by Congress! This was the best present we could receive for during the holiday season. By renewing the program, Congress has ensured that the NIH can continue to capitalize on investments already made by continuing long-term studies and launching new clinical trials that will foster to the development of new therapies. We want to thank all of you for your assistance in getting Congress to renew the SDP. Thanks to you, therapies will be developed to bring us closer to a cure, and we could not have done it without you!

I know that everyone was excited by and focused on the SDP renewal. Here are some other things you may have missed in the excitement last month:

• December was a Spread the Word contest month in which advocates could win a trip to Washington, D.C. for the JDRF Advocacy Government Day in March. You all recruited hundreds of advocates as a part of the contest, and the contest winner was announced earlier this week. Click here to find out who won!

• Our advocates provided feedback throughout 2010 that helped us in every aspect of our advocacy efforts. We want to be sure that you continue to give us your feedback and ideas in the new year! To facilitate this, we have created the JDRF Advocacy Partners group on Facebook. See how you can join by clicking here.

• Now that the SDP has been renewed, we are looking forward to accomplishing new goals in 2011. One of these goals is to meet with newly elected Members of Congress as a part of the New Member Outreach Initiative. Click here to find out how you can get involved.

• Lastly, a new social media space launched in late 2010 called Jumo. Jumo focuses on connecting advocates with non-profit organizations they may be interested in. Mike provided a review of the site in a December blog post. Read about Mike’s feelings on the site and leave your own comments here.

I hope you all had a fantastic holiday season and are enjoying 2011 as much as I have been. I look forward to tackling new challenges with you this year! As always, please feel free to leave me a question or comment below. Happy New Year!