A Trail-Blazer Against Parkinson's Disease
By Ryan Richards        04/08/2004

Rich Kosiorek walks every day, sometimes for many hours, sometimes for many miles. He walks to maintain his stamina -
both physical and mental. He walks with others for friendship and support.

On April 17, he'll walk for another reason - to bring awareness to a disease that afflicts him and 1,500,000 other
Americans - Parkinson's disease.

The Devon resident and seasoned walker is the organizer of "Walk in the Park for Parkinson's," a walk to benefit the
National Parkinson Foundation and in conjunction with the Parkinson Council, which promotes research, education and
support to patients and their families. The walk will start at Lower Perkiomen Valley Park and continue on to Valley
Forge National Historical Park.

In 1999, Kosiorek was in charge of planning for Cigna's property and casualty operations in Philadelphia. He had worked
for the company for more than 30 years. At 55 years old, he was fit - a regular at a health club at Liberty Place and
hiker who walked every week day to and from his office to the train station.

But early that year, a second opinion by a University of Pennsylvania physician confirmed he had Parkinson's, a chronic
and slowly progressive disease where certain nerve cells in the brain inexplicably degenerate, leading to tremors,
muscular stiffness and slowness of movement.

The doctor, Matthew Stern, a staunch hiker and walker himself, encouraged his patient to remain active and maintain his
physical health.

"Do whatever you're doing but just do more of it," he recalls his doctor saying to him.

The executive believed it was time to reassess his life. The property and casualty division of Cigna was acquired by
another company, and not long after the acquisition he went on long-term disability, and then retirement.

He turned his attention to what he loved doing best - walking and hiking. His goal was to traverse the equivalent of
the circumference of the earth - some 25,000 miles, by the time he was 70.

He also found solace with the Chester County Trail Club, which he joined in 2000.

"I've always been a walker, hiker," he explains during a recent interview on a rainy Saturday morning at Valley Forge
National Historical Park.

"It's (the club) provided me with the opportunity to see lots of Chester County and hike many parts of the metropolitan
region," he remarks. "The club is a wonderful club. People there are very caring and very thoughtful, and everyone
there seems to be very physically fit."

He and other club members stick to a schedule of hiking and walking outings - varying in distance and landscape, both
leisurely and rigorous. They have been on the Appalachian Trail, Kosiorek says, trekking through Massachusetts,
Virginia, Maryland. They hike near, such as weekly "fitness" hikes at Ridley State Park, as well as far, such as an
excursion through Switzerland.

He says his longest hike since the diagnosis was about 23 miles at Blue Marsh Lake outside of Reading on National
Trails Day in 2002.

Occasionally, because of difficulty balancing on challenging terrain due to his Parkinson's, the hikes become hazardous
and Kosiorek can recall several serious falls.

He tells with clarity the first accident - at the end of a hiking trial in Lancaster County. He fell while walking with
other club members as he descended a hill to reach the parking lot. "We were near the end of our hike," he says. He
fell hard and his fellow hikers rushed to his aid.

"They called the ambulance and we ended up in Brandywine Hospital," he says. He took 27 stitches to the face.

But even home can present a risk. He says on Nov. 7, 2002, while in an upstairs room, he fell and became unconscious.
His wife, Marcianne, called 911, and he was transported by helicopter to a hospital's trauma center. His injuries
included a hurt back and a nick on his spleen. He spent a week recuperating at the University of Pennsylvania Hospital
and then another week rehabilitating at Bryn Mawr Rehab in Malvern.

He says the falls have made him more cautious about where he hikes, and he doesn't drive anyone.

But little will keep Kosiorek from hitting the trails on April 17, for the second annual Walk for Parkinson's, which
this year coincides with worldwide Parkinson's Awareness Month. The first walk last year brought out 48 walkers,
including about 25 from his club, raising $2,300. This year he aims to top those figures, as the event is being more
broadly promoted.

"We're going to have a mile walk within Lower Perkiomen Park" in Oaks, he explains. The procession will then proceed
along the Schuylkill River Trail, which connects to Betzwood Bridge at Valley Forge. Walkers will have the option of
crossing the river and continuing the walk along the perimeter of the park for another 5.4 miles.

The walk will conclude back at Lower Perkiomen Valley Park.

He is coordinating the walk with Kevin Peyton, a 38-year-old Newtown, Bucks County, father with Parkinson's.

Kosiorek says he has gained support for the walk from his church, and many area businesses have joined the cause. He
says Teva, a pharmaceutical company, is a major sponsor of the charity event. The Running Place in Newtown Square is
providing each walker with a $5 gift certificate, and the Devon McDonald's is donating 300 certificates for
cheeseburgers. Wawa is contributing "lots of goodies," he says, such as bottled water, pretzels, and bags of chips.

Many other Main Line businesses have contributed funding or gifts for the benefit. They include Trader Joe's, Liberty
gas station, DeLuca's Barbershop, Main Street Café, Waterloo Gardens, Community Flooring, Cry of the Loon, Commerce
Bank and Eastern Mountain Sports.

"People have been very kind and very generous," he comments.

At 60, Kosiorek is a tall, lean man with short grayish-white hair and a distinguished face. His bluish eyes match his
REI jacket, which complemented the rest of his rugged attire - a sturdy pair of dark grayish-brown pants and hiking
books.

His goal to complete the equivalent of walking around the world is now at about 9,500 miles. As he completes his
interview on a bench at Valley Forge, he is about to get closer to his goal.

"I'm going to be walking home from here today," he points out nonchalantly.

With a quick stride, he enters the ascending paved path for the walk home - a mere five miles for a man whose every
vigorous, determined step is a personal march against a dreaded disease.

- - -

IF YOU GO..."Walk in the Park for Parkinson's" is scheduled for Saturday, April 17, 9 a.m., starting at Lower Perkiomen
Valley Park, to benefit the National Parkinson Foundation. Walkers can chose a one-mile, 7-mile, or 13-mile trail. No
minimum donation is required, but those donating $25 or more will receive a T-shirt.

Checks can be made payable to "The Parkinson Council" and mailed to the council at P.O. Box 1948, Media, PA 19063.

For information and directions, call 215-576-1399.

For information on the Chester County Trails Club, call 610-933-3173, or visit the Web site http://www.cctrailclub.org

SOURCE: Wayne Suburban Newspapers, PA
http://tinyurl.com/2yll4

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