Record $50,000 raised for effort to find cure for Parkinson’s
Bob Thompson has lived with Parkinson’s disease for 11 years now, but he is confident the day will come when there is a cure for the degenerative disease.
Thompson and 250 other people gathered in Waterfront Park on Saturday morning for the annual Parkinson SuperWalk to raise awareness and money for the Parkinson Society of B.C.
“Money that we raise here helps provide research and hope for a cure, and that’s what keeps me going,” said Thompson, co-chair of the event.
This year’s event raised a record $50,000.
Money raised from the 20 walks across the province will not only help fund research for a cure, but will also fund programs such as counselling, patient education and new diagnosis seminars.
“It really makes a difference,” said Daryl Wile, a Kelowna neurologist who specializes in Parkinson’s disease and movement disorders.
Around 1,200 to 1,300 people in the Okanagan have Parkinson’s, said Wile.
“The biggest clinic in B.C. is in Vancouver, but our patients have a hard time travelling, so the idea is to centralize some of the care here in Kelowna,” he said.
“The Parkinson’s community in Kelowna and the Okanagan is so positive. The patients here are so dedicated and helpful toward one another, and they’re very enthusiastic.”
The Parkinson Society of B.C. estimates there are 13,300 people living with Parkinson’s disease in B.C.
The disease primarily affects people aged 60 and older.
“As the population ages, Parkinson’s affects more of us,” said Thompson. “Someday, somebody is going to say we found a cure. We may have Parkinson’s, but Parkinson’s will never have us.”