Community Outreach

By: Samantha Barbian

We came. We saw. We conquered. From March 19-21^st my dad, Craig, and I attended the Parkinson’s Policy Forum in Washington DC. We were joined by approximately 300 other Parkinson’s advocates from around the country. The feeling of being one community and truly supporting each other was undeniable. I found it interesting hearing all the different stories how Parkinson’s has affected each persons life. No two stories in the room were exactly alike just like the disease does not effect each person’s body and mind the same.

One speaker who was so inspirational that I will never forget was New Jersey Senator Cory Booker. He told stories about his life growing up and the stories his father would tell. Near the end of his speech he revealed that his father had Parkinson’s. This quote from Senator Booker hit home with many of us:

“My dad showed me what courage was about, as he struggled with this foe of Parkinson’s, and more than that, he showed me what the power of the community is about. About people who were there for him, who counseled him, who laughed with him. About folks who understood the complexities of the challenges.”

Parkinson’s patients need that community to help them keep pushing forward and to never give up.

If you were unable to attend the Parkinson’s Policy Forum there are a few ways you can still get involved. One way is to check out the website www.parkinsonsforum.org for all the information that was shared at the conference. Another way that you can get involved is to contact your legislators and ask them to fund the National Neurological Surveillance System. This program is a database for all neurological diseases to keep track of the occurrences in our society. We are also looking for continued support of Parkinson’s research done on veterans who served in Vietnam by the Department of Defense.

If you would like more information about the forum, please contact me at [email protected].

Samantha with New Jersey Senator Cory Booker