Message From the Executive Director (May 2025)

In the desert where I now live, May brings out the claws of summer... numbing heat, numbing sun, and yes, paralyzing utility bills. However, I’m a New Engander at heart so for me, May means Spring. An unclenching of the shoulders, braced for so many months against snow and rain. A little sigh of relief and release from the perennial fear that this year winter won’t retreat. Warmth. Renewal. Life quickens, flowers bloom.

And yet, we mark the month with a sobering event... Memorial Day, a worthy exercise in remembrance of those who died in active military service for our country.

Here at Parkinson’s Resource Organization, we also honor our own community of lost heroes, always. The men, women, and family members who have battled Parkinson’s and left behind rich legacies. We honor them through our mission, working so no one is isolated because of Parkinson’s, we honor them through our drive to do and learn more so you can live a good life with Parkinson’s, and we honor them with our Memorial Wall.

The intention of the Memorial Wall is to capture the diversity and rich legacies of the people we have already lost to Parkinson’s and demonstrate to the world the high human cost of this neglected disorder.

There’s a bit of a whiplash effect, coming off a month of exuberance and activity (April is Parkinson’s Awareness Month) straight into the solemnity of our month of Memorial. If anything though, it underscores the great urgency of our cause.

The incidence of Parkinson’s is expected to double by 2050. It’s already the fastest-growing, second most common neurodegenerative disease in the world. And evidence continues to materialize that Parkinson’s is, as one article in today’s newsletter claims, “a man-made disease.”

Last month, I asked you to donate or promote PRO through social media engagement in honor of Parkinson’s Awareness Month. Today, my ask is simpler, albeit a bit harder. Take some time to explore our Memorial Wall. Say hello to the wonderful people on there and read their unique stories. We honor their legacy by remembering them, by uplifting their families, and by kicking up a big old fuss about Parkinson’s until there’s a cure.

Now read on for PROTECTING YOURSELF AND LOVED ONES IN THE AGE OF SCAMS AND TECHNOLOGY, MEN HAVE HIGHER RISK OF PARKINSON'S, AND WE MAY FINALLY KNOW WHY, COMMON MEDICATIONS MAY DELAY PARKINSON’S ONSET, COULD TARGETING PARKINSON'S OUTSIDE OF THE BRAIN IMPROVE SYMPTOMS?, THIS MONTH ON ‘TOGETHER IN PARKINSON’S, HOW CUTTING MEDICAID WOULD AFFECT LONG-TERM CARE AND FAMILY CAREGIVERS, PARKINSON’S IS A MAN-MADE DISEASE, MEET THE PRO TEAM.

ALWAYS remember to CELEBRATE YOU and LEAD WITH LOVE.

Eileen