Sharing Her Story

For Elizabeth Kurowski Quante, the hardest part of being diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at age 14 was “getting used to a completely new normal,” she recalls.

“I couldn’t eat without thinking about it. I couldn’t exercise or go out for a walk without thinking about what my blood sugar is,” she says. “If I wanted to eat a piece of cake at a birthday party, I would have to prick my finger and then give myself a shot of insulin.”

Rather than try to hide her struggles, she volunteered with Breakthrough T1D, sparking a lifelong mission to help others like herself. Joining the St. Louis chapter, Kurowski Quante and her family began participating in national walks, fundraising galas, and advocacy work.

“I kind of jumped full force into it, and that really ignited all of my philanthropic desires,” says Kurowski Quante, who now manages her condition with a glucose monitor and insulin pump that communicate via Bluetooth. “Immediately, I was surrounded by like-minded people who understood what I was going through. I also realized the impact I could have on people who didn’t accept their diagnosis as much.”

In 2009, the year after her diagnosis, Kurowski Quante accompanied a group of kids who regularly traveled to Washington, D.C., to meet with members of Congress and advocate for funding for Type 1 diabetes research. As an adult, she educates leaders on Capitol Hill in an effort to expand access to new technology, pushing for affordable insulin and Type 1 diabetes funding. And, in 2022, she became advocacy team chair of her T1D chapter board.

“It’s so impactful to hear people’s stories and share their stories—and share my own story,” she says. “It’s an amazing community. We’re making a difference, and we’re getting the word out. It’s something I’m passionate about.”

Her passion isn’t limited to diabetes issues, either. While attending Saint Louis University in 2013, she met the founder of Rainbows for Kids, a charity serving children in the Greater St. Louis area’s pediatric hospitals. She was soon coordinating events for children with cancer and other serious illnesses who can’t normally participate things like baseball and fishing trips.

“T1D is my No. 1 because of my own diagnosis,” says Kurowski Quante, who has served on Rainbows’ board of directors since 2016. “But I enjoyed having something else to do—something for other people that is so impactful—as well.”

Kurowski Quante also channels her legal skills into pro bono work. In 2024, she and a group of attorneys from her firm, MG+M, updated a map of state laws on abortion, telehealth, and mail-order abortion pills for RHITES (Reproductive Health Initiative for Telehealth Equity & Solutions).

Perhaps her most rewarding pro bono undertaking involved helping a student with Type 1 diabetes negotiate reasonable access to treatment with a school district’s authorities. “She had the same continuous glucose monitor and insulin pump that I had, and her school was not allowing her to use them as she wanted to,” says Kurowski Quante.

After days of explaining the student’s situation—as well as the Americans with Disabilities Act and other federal civil rights laws—to teachers, a principal, and a superintendent, Kurowski Quante obtained permission for the student to use her life-saving devices on-site. “I could use my legal expertise, but also my Type 1 diabetes expertise,” Kurowski Quante says. “It was probably the most rewarding thing I’ve done as a lawyer.”

Helping others helps balance the demands of her day-to-day practice, Kurowski Quante says. “Sometimes we get too caught up in our jobs and the legal world and what you’re fighting for or what you’re fighting against. And this brings me back into reality a little bit.

“You can do anything [if you have] this condition, and that’s how I’ve always lived my life.”