Former pro football star Jay Leeuwenburg achieved his dreams after developing juvenile diabetes at the age of 12. He will be the guest speaker and do book signings at this year’s Watermelon Stampede event. This year’s event will be held Friday and Saturday, August 17th and 18th.

Leeuwenberg’s book “Yes I Can! Yes You Can!” describes how he was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes and became a successful football player. He played nine NFL seasons from 1992 to 2000 with the Chicago Bears, Indianapolis Colts, Cincinnati Bengals and Washington Redskins.

Kim Seligmen who coordinated the Watermelon Stampede, invited Leeuwenberg to the event after learning about him through an Internet search.

The Watermelon Stampede is a 5K run that partnered with the Junior Diabetes Research Foundation in 2005. The race is run in memory of the late Matt Selig-man, the son of Kim and her husband Brian. Matt was a Muscatine High School student who died from complications related to juvenile diabetes at age 17 on December 4, 2004. His family honors him by supporting diabetes research.