About Us
Rob Howe - Founder
Rob Howe is a Type-1 Diabetic living in Dallas Texas. Diagnosed on January 1st, 2005 at the age of 16, Rob was the recipient of excellent care from the incredible endocrine staff of Children's Medical Center of Dallas. They assured him that as long as he took care of his health, he could achieve all the goals he had for his life. After living with Diabetes for 10 years, he decided that there were probably people living with Diabetes who could benefit from his story, and he started Diabetics Doing Things in 2015 with a simple mission: Help One Person. Over 1.8 million podcast downloads (and counting) and speaking at dozens of Diabetes events across the world, Diabetics Doing Things has certainly met that goal, and Rob is living proof.
Diabetics Doing Things was born out of the idea that not everyone receives the same kind of treatment during diagnosis that Rob received at Children's. Those people need to hear stories of their Diabetic peers who are out in the world living their lives and accomplishing the goals they've set for themselves. Through the telling of each other's stories, Rob continues to build Diabetics Doing Things with the hope that the community will continue to grow and provide encouragement, positivity, tools, tactics, hacks and hope for everyone with Type-1 Diabetes, while educating the general public on the hopes, struggles and thoughts of the Type-1 Diabetic community. As Diabetics Doing Things has continued to grow, the company has added spokes in the impact flywheel to develop practical applications for people with Diabetes, beginning in 2022 with the North Texas Food Bank collaboration.
Rob is a Co-Founder and Managing Partner of Recreation Dallas, a full-service advertising agency in Dallas Texas, which he started in 2016 with his business partner Sterling Hayman. He is 34 and lives in East Dallas with his wife Erica and their two dogs Rowan and Enzo and cat, Michael J. Fox.
For more background on Rob’s life with Diabetes, after graduating as the Valedictorian of his High School class, Rob went on to receive a full collegiate scholarship to the University of Colorado - Colorado Springs to play basketball, and graduated with honors 4 years later with a Bachelors of Science in Business. In the fall of 2012 Rob accepted an offer to play professional basketball for the Washington Generals against the World Famous Harlem Globetrotters on their 2012-13 World Tour and fulfill his lifelong dream of playing pro basketball. Rob has since retired from the professional hoops, but works full-time on his agency while volunteering as a Board Member for JDRF Dallas, a host and speaker for the American Diabetes Association, and can be found speaking at Diabetes events throughout the world, working with top Diabetes brands like Medtronic Diabetes, OneDrop, Myabetic, Mannkind and Xeris Biopharma and others, while continuing to strive to accomplish his mission of Helping 1 person with Diabetes at a time.
Team
Eritrea Mussa Khan - Producer
Eritrea Mussa is a Type-1 Diabetic who was diagnosed in 2002 at the Age of 9, right after a trip to Germany. Because of her background, Eritrea has lived in other parts of the world and experienced how different Diabetes can be due to where you live or how much money you have. She has always carried a strong love of travel and culture. Both of her parents are immigrants to America and a big part of her childhood was spent traveling to visit family around the world.
Learning about Diabetes Treatments in other countries has fueled her passion to advocate for better healthcare in America. Currently, Eritrea utilizes a Tandem T-Slim X2 pump and a Dexcom CGM. Professionally, Eritrea spends her days as the Social Media Manager for The Diatribe Foundation.
She is a founding member of the Communities In Schools Youth Leadership board in Dallas and volunteers with the American Diabetes Association, as well. She currently resides in Dallas, Texas with her furry roommate, Laila.
Ashley Bright - Chief of Staff
Ashley Bright met Rob doing improv comedy over a decade ago. They forged a friendship through their love of Mad Men, The Wire, and their belief in the power of incremental progress. She continues to teach and perform improv and sketch comedy in Dallas with a focus on helping students and collaborators find their own voices and hone their unique skills as performers.
Ashley is also the Operations Manager for Recreation Dallas, where she helps oversee day-to-day operations and lead a team of talented staff. One of Ashley's guiding principles is the importance of incremental progress. She believes that small steps can add up to big results.
She is also committed to making a difference wherever she can, and she takes pride in using her skills and experience to benefit others. Beyond her day jobs and work in the comedy world, Ashley is deeply committed to making a positive impact in her community. She volunteers as a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA), working with children in the foster care system to ensure that they are safe and well-cared-for.
Ashley currently resides in Dallas, TX, where she continues to perform, teach, and give back to her community. Her unique blend of creativity, expertise, and compassion make her a true force to be reckoned with, and she is sure to continue making an impact for many years to come.