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It is with a great amount of humility and belief in the human spirit that I am going to try to express my gratitude for everyone who helped to make Shake, Rattle & Roll-2004 such a success!! It is always amazing to me what can be accomplished thru determination and a bit ( ok-a lot!) of hard work!! On Saturday, June 26th, we were treated to the 3rd in a series of interactive symposiums entitled "Patients As Providers." This is presented by PLWP.org (People Living With Parkinson's) but it was mainly the pet project of Holly Angus. This year, she arranged for a different location (more space, light, and accessibility), food, people to work, sponsors and a program that was extremely interesting. "Seeking Strength and Relief-Integrative Therapies and PD" brought together a myriad of different speakers: Brenda Tucker (co-founder of PLWP), Carol Walton (executive director of the Parkinson Alliance) as herself and also filling in for the awol Nancy Abraham (co-founder of PLWP), Joe DeGiovanni (the head of the exercise program at IPMR), Jeanna Dakin (an instructor of Thai G), Kim Gayon (a chiropractor who also spoke about the benefits of massage and nutrition) and Dr. Marc Katchen (the director of the new PD & Movement Disorder Clinic that opened recently in Peoria). The discussions were all packed full of information and advice and were judged by all in attendance to be a major success for both PLWP and Holly. Sponsors were Medtronics and Boehringer-Ingelheim. Sunday dawned hazy and cool as we all made an early start down at Le Vieux Carre. I am still amazed at the wonderful work done by volunteers: they set up the silent auction, the decorations, the food tables, the entertainment, and the registration with a flair for making everything easy and right. We had the best of helpers from Peoria Rotary North, friends and neighbors and people who just wanted to chip in and help. Gina Morrs from WEEK channel 25 was our master of ceremonies, and as always, did a fantastic job. Jim Evanhaus and his team of fellow Rotarians made short work of the balloons and other decorations and then went on to do an extraordinary job of registering all the walkers. Bill Keister, an old friend and soundman was right there the entire day, mixing the sound for all of our wonderful entertainers: starting with the legendary Ken Carlyle who was joined onstage by his old bandmate and former harp player for Pork & The Havana Ducks and also for Duke Tomato & The All-Star Frogs, Kent "The Doctor" LeCouris. This was my personal surprise for Ken and it was an awesome sight to see them play together again. Doc sat in and played harmonica for most of Ken's appearance. Then we were treated to a performance by the Hair Co. Kids; leading off the show was a tiny girl with a whale of a voice-Madison Castle belted out the song "Proud To Be An American" and had everyone screaming for more. Then the littlest girls did a hip-hop routine to "Material Girl" that even Madonna could look to for moves. They were followed by two girls just a bit older and just as cute and talented, and who danced to "Crush." The stars of the show were the two teenage girls who danced to "AM 2 PM" and performed their routine that landed them in nationals . After the walk, we were entertained by the powerful and exciting Celtic band-"The Bog Side Zukes." At noon, the speakers were abundant and to the point. We were graced by the presence of State Senator George Shadid, State Representative David R. Leitch (author of Illinois Cord Blood Donation Bill), State Representative Ricca Slaone, US Representative Lane Evans (a fellow parkie) and Michelle Obama (the wife of the Democratic nominee for US Senate). It was a real coup for me to entertain such a bi-partisan array of dignitaries. I must mention the food: most of it was donated by local bakeries (Hanson's, Trefzger's & Apple's); sweet breads from Connie Randall at "A Matter of Taste"...there were turnovers and cinnamon rolls from Betty Sue's, wonderful coffee from "Happy Thoughts Coffee Shop," fruit from Kroger's and Shanuck's and then after the walk, we were treated to mpstacolli and bread pudding from Rizzi's on State Street. None of this would have been possible without the help and hard-working Pat Sullivan and his crew of help from Kelleher's. Pat was first on the scene in the am and the last to leave when it ended. And I would be remiss if I didn't mention the silent auction and all the terrific people from all over the world who helped to make this auction one of the greatest collection of prizes ever assembled. Although some of the items that I thought were worth more than they brought in (bidders got some fabulous deals!), I think that we brought in half of the retail price of all the goods auctioned off so that is better than we should have hoped for (if not what I had dreamed of!). It is the most humbling experience to see all the effort and time put into making many of these items...especially those made and sent or brought by fellow parkies. It makes me realize how truly blessed we are to have such wonderful and talented friends. Finally, I must thank the PWP's who shared in this event with Holly and me: Karen, Tony, Mike, and all the local parkies, the ever-popular Brenda Tucker, Toad and Nanny who are always a delight, the ever-loyal and always helpful Caz and her sister Helen, newcomers Chris (cinemaripper) and Judy Herbert (judygay) from the chatroom, our dear friend and fellow advocate Paula Tomlin and our friend Nancy Van Hook and we can't forget our sponsor and advisor Carol Walton from the Parkinson Alliance. We might not have made it to our goal or even to last year's total but I have nothing but admiration and a lot of gratitude for all of the hard work and the tremendous effort put forth by lots of great folks. Thank you all. -- Joan E. Blessington Snyder 51/13 http://www.pwnkle.com/jes/jes_web/index.htm <[log in to unmask]> "Hang tough...........no way through it but to do it." 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