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hi all my concern over verifying e-mail identities recently has serendipitously (?) resulted in a rewarding connection with the Maine Parkinson Society (MEPS) through Karen Bardo, President, and Harold Jones, Secretary. annual tulip bulb sales have long been a major fund raiser for the parkinson organisations in canada, starting with Ottawa, the nation's capital, in the mid-eighties, and boosted by Anne Rutherford of Newfoundland and her energy and inspiration in 1988 (co-incidentally - the year i was diagnosed) some of the tulip/parkinson history is outlined on the Newfoundland/Labrador site at: http://www.geocities.com/nwfndlnd/ in the December, 2000, issue of the Journal of the Maine Parkinson Society, Karen Bardo reported: "28,800 Dr. James Parkinson tulip bulbs were ordered this year, topping last year's total of 8,400. Parkinson bulbs have been sent to Wisconsin, Connecticut, Vermont, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Oklahoma." the journal article goes on to list the vast array of individuals and corporations who made the tulip project such a success, such as Lynn MacGregor, Linda Abbott, Paul McClay, Kathy Puff, Audrey Latella, Tom Perry, Carl Barker, Peter Price, Nance Braun, and Paul Kavanich, just to name a very few. Harold Jones states, in the Maine Parkinson Society's plan for 2001, "MEPS adopted the tulip as a symbol of Parkinson's disease and hope, as has been done in the Maritime Provinces of Canada. A tulip lapel pin has been reproduced and has proven popular as a symbol and fund raiser. "In 1999, 8,400 Dr. James Tulip bulbs were ordered from Holland and sold by MEPS in Maine. 'Gardens of Hope' were planted in 10 places with appropriate signage, promoting tulips as a symbol of PD. In 2000, 26,000 Dr. James Parkinson tulip bulbs were sold by MEPS. Many more 'Gardens of Hope' were planted in several communities in Maine. "Word of mouth provided tulip bulb orders from six other states. Major companies like Bath Iron Works, Central Maine Power Company, Fleet Bank, Merrill Merchants Bank, Portland Press Herald, Kennebec Savings Bank, and Anthem Blue Cross/Blue Shield allowed tulip bulb sales to their employees. Significant progress has been made in raising funds and awareness of Parkinson's disease in Maine." In a personal note to me over the holidays, Harold Jones says, "We tip our hat to Canada on the success that we are having in promoting the tulip to raise awareness of PD. "Our state capitol buildings are having a mojor reconstruction so our tulips won't be there until next fall. Maine's busiest traffic circle is one block from the Capitol complex. "A bank, with a National Historic Register building and beautifully landscaped grounds, is on that circle. They planted 1,600 Dr. James Parkinson tulips around their fence next to the circle. "During blooming season, we will have a large banner on the fence to raise awareness of PD through the tulip symbol. "The above garden is our largest 'Garden of Hope'. We had 10 'Gardens of Hope' this spring, and we will have about 30 in Maine public places next spring. We had word of mouth tulip orders from six other states this year, and Vermont asked for our source of bulbs. "In marketing, symbols are very important. I hope this can be expanded to all states and provinces, so that PD will gain the awareness which it deserves." the tulip as a symbol for pd means a lot to me personally ottawa (45km away) is the recipient of massive numbers of dutch tulips each year, displayed during their annual tulip festival, as thanks from the dutch royal family for providing shelter during the second world war. my father served in the canadian army signal corps at that time, and was treated to amazing hospitality and gratitude in holland at the end of the war i share harold's hope about the tulip as a pd symbol janet ? janet paterson, an akinetic rigid subtype parkie 53 now / 44 dx cd / 43 onset cd / 41 dx pd / 37 onset pd TEL: 613 256 8340 SMAIL: PO Box 171 Almonte Ontario K0A 1A0 Canada EMAIL: [log in to unmask] URL: http://www.geocities.com/janet313/