Catching Up with Adam Kavka

Adam and Julianne.

When I pedaled across the USA in 2007, the first time I raised money for JDRF, I cranked out the 4,000-plus miles in honor of a number of former and current students, and friends, and my youngest daughter, Emily, who have type-1 diabetics. Adam Kavka was kind enough to let me ride in his name then, and do a follow-up interview for my third cross-country ride. It was a pleasure to catch up on his life.

(The story of how he helped me when my daughter was diagnosed is included in the original post from 2007, below.)

 

Since I last crossed paths with Mr. Kavka, he has aged a little (whereas I have started to shrivel). He’s thirty-two, has a degree from Ohio State in physics, and a master’s from Carnegie Mellon. Eventually, he decided he didn’t want to pursue a PhD. in physics, and turned instead toward computer sciences. Today he’s a software engineer for Meta, the parent of Facebook, and lives in Washington D.C. He says he’s happy in his career path. He’s been in the capital since 2016, briefly crossed paths with my daughters, Sarah and Emily, who were living there at the time, before moving away, and Adam met his girlfriend, Julianne, there, too.

Adam and Julianne incognito.

 

She’s an event coordinator for the Smithsonian, focused on Asian art, and a Mt. Holyoke and Georgetown graduate. As I always like to do, I asked how they met. Adam admits they signed up for a dating app called, “The League,” which originally focused on graduates of Ivy League schools. But their budding attraction almost wilted at the start. Adam’s phone stopped working, and messages Julianne was sending kept going to his Apple watch, and he didn’t see them, and failed to respond, and both thought the other had lost interest. Now they’re going strong.

At the White House.

 

Fate is fickle, of course. Adam and Julianne never had to meet. They didn’t have to move to D.C., but did. Another week of missed signals might have killed the romance. The curse of the Apple watch. Adam could have decided to go for his PhD., and not move to D.C. And it’s an entirely different story if he does. What is it? 

Fate “swipes left?” 

It’s a lot like developing type-1 diabetes. Your immune system decides to “swipe left.” There you are. You’ve been hit with a lifelong disease for which – now going on 102 years – there has been no known cure. 

For Adam, Fate delivered the low blow when he was twelve. He’s had to spend two decades checking his blood sugar, and admits, “I get tired of it,” although his A1C is 6.4, which means he has excellent control. When I asked him what he notices most about how diabetes disrupts his life, he mentioned the “constant tension” whenever he goes out, a kind of “mental strain” revolving around what he can eat, or cannot, and what activities to engage in or avoid, a constant “decision making in life that gets frustrating.” He plays tennis, and likes to go hiking, and exercise helps him control his disease. Then, at other times, it can send him low; and suddenly his health is at risk. 

When I mention I started my cross-country ride at Acadia National Park, in Maine, he says he’s hiked there with his family, and also in the Shenandoah Valley. I tell him he should be sure to do the hike up “Old Rag.”

Hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park.

 

Obviously, he’s tech savvy, so young Mr. Kavka would like those newly diagnosed with type-1 diabetes to understand. Options for care have greatly improved since he and his family first got the news. And it is the family that gets the news – because diabetes is an all-consuming disease. Today, he can rely on his continuous glucose monitoring system and no longer needs to wake up every night to check his blood. Julianne keeps close watch on Adam and helps him manage his care. Some of the biggest improvements came in “a wave,” Adam says, about ten years ago, and “things are better than they ever were.” 

Adam laughs a little about the challenges he faces every day, but I know, from watching my daughter, that dealing with type-1 diabetes is still a grind. I asked what he remembers about first being diagnosed. He recalls thinking, “This is something that happens to someone else.” Only it wasn’t. It’s a disease brought on by a fluke autoimmune reaction, and it strikes almost exclusively young people, always at random. You can’t guard against getting the disease. There’s no vaccine you can take. So finding a cure is the ending battle being waged by the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. 

Adam doesn’t really complain. Rather, he feels lucky. He tells me his father retired early, so both mom and dad were able to help him cope with his “new” type-1 life from the very start. His older sister Becky, and older brother, Danny, both supported him, and mentions that Becky has two children, who bring his parents “endless joy.” I had Becky as a student, too. Smart young lady. Hard-working. Creative. Funny.

Becky is in the striped dress - the Navarre and Kavka families.

 

Adam tells me he has fond memories of growing up in Loveland, Ohio, where he went to school, and where I first met him in my seventh grade American history class. Like his sister, he was a star student, but says he wasn’t interested in computer science until later. I wonder what Becky is up to now? He says she’s the head tax accountant for Scott’s, the lawncare company. As for fun, he mentions he does a game night with friends almost every week, and Sunday evenings are for “Movie Night” with Julianne. 

I am always looking for good movies to watch, and wonder if he has any recommendations to offer. 

“Civil War,” he says, is good. 

I should have told him to see “The Holdovers,” but blanked out. So, if Adam and Julianne read this, there’s a recommendation. Two thumbs up, if I count both my thumbs. Four, if I count my wife’s. 

So, there you have it: two free movie reviews, and a quick update from the frontlines of type-1 diabetes. Like our daughter Emily, who has been fighting the same battle for almost as long, Adam Kavka can at least assure those just receiving the bad news, there’s hope. Care has greatly improved. It will continue to improve. 

Today, the challenge centers increasingly on finding a cure. 

Adam hopes that’s the next “wave.”

YOU CAN DONATE TO JDRF HERE.

POSTSCRIPT: When I check up on a few details with Adam, he mentions that he and Julianne have already seen “The Holdovers,” but I will let that recommendation stand for anyone else who reads this. 

As for “Old Rag,” here’s a photo I like, from the top:

That's not me; but I took the photo.

 

Post from 2007

Adam and Shelby Copenhaver (also a cool former student).

Adam Kavka would tell you he’s “a pretty typical college student,” and he is, except that he hopes to pursue a PhD. in physics someday and says his dream job would be to work on the CERN particle accelerator in Switzerland. 

I first met Adam when he was in seventh grade and in my American history class. It was obvious even then that he was going to be a success in the future. Adam is gifted in mathematics, hardworking, and humble about his talents, always funny and polite. 

That year I missed three days of work when my daughter Emily, 14, was diagnosed with type-1 diabetes and had to spend the time at Children’s Hospital. I was tired and a little scared the day I came back to school, because our family didn’t know what to expect. Adam waited until after class and then quietly approached my desk. “If you have any questions about diabetes, I’d be happy to talk,” he said.

I was deeply touched by Adam’s concern, his kindness and wisdom, at 13, to approach someone four times his age and offer solace. Suddenly, I felt better, knowing that someone so young could face up to this unfortunate situation so bravely.

And I have seen the same courage from many other diabetic kids since.

Adam, himself, was first diagnosed in sixth grade. His father, John, happened to read a story about a Pittsburgh Steelers player who had type-1 diabetes. A few days later he noticed Adam was struggling in one of his soccer games. “You just didn’t seem to have much energy,” he told his son when he came off the field at the end of the contest. Adam admitted he had been tired and thirsty most of the game.

Dad knew then: Lack of energy, having to go to the bathroom constantly, unexplained drop in weight. Adam might be diabetic.

Once the diagnosis was confirmed the Kavka family decided to make the best of the worst situation. Patty, Adam’s mom, Becky, his sister (also a fantastic former student), older brother Danny, and dad made it their mission to help Adam any way they could. “We were very accepting,” dad remembers today, “we had a health problem, and we had to deal with it the best we could.” 

One of their few low moments came the first time they sent Adam out on Halloween after his condition was diagnosed. “I have a terrible feeling that Adam will be out there, and he’ll fall behind his friends, and be laying there alone in the dark,”  mom told dad. Adam made his rounds just fine and has been handling his situation with success ever since. You know you can’t let down, because the health ramifications can be great, but his A1C counts are almost always under 7.0, which is like getting an A+ if you’re a type-1 diabetic. Adam is now on the pump, and, like our daughter Emily, has seen real improvements in care options available in the last few years. JDRF funding has been instrumental to new research.

Adam really isn’t a “diabetic.” It’s unfair to classify him in just that way. He’s a freshman at Ohio State, with the usual freshman concerns. He’s on the debate team and lives in an honors dorm. He still plays the piano, as he did in the jazz band at Loveland Middle School and Loveland High. He says he works a lot (no doubt true), has a good time, and doesn’t worry because “worrying doesn’t get you anywhere.” Dad says, “He’s a unique individual.”

That he is.

If worrying doesn’t get you anywhere talent and effort do and I believe Dr. Kavka is going to be running that particle accelerator someday.

I also predict they’re going to cure this disease.

YOU CAN DONATE TO JDRF HERE.