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FUND RAISING HISTORY2: Concerts Shine Light On Parkinson's Disease Published in the Home News Tribune 11/05/04 By CHRIS JORDAN STAFF WRITER In his ice hockey playing days, Bob Benjamin was a mucker. "I was never the best skater or the best shooter, but I always worked hard," said Benjamin of his days playing intramural hockey at the Buffalo campus of the State University of New York. "I'd go into the corners and dig the puck out." Benjamin, who now lives in Highland Park, received multiple stitches and a busted nose for his efforts, but that was nothing compared to the blind-side hit life would give Benjamin later. Benjamin, now 46, was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease when he was 38. But he's not letting it hang him up. Benjamin, who manages recording artists such as Joe Grushecky, has taken the fight to the disease by organizing the yearly Light of Day concerts at the Stone Pony in Asbury Park. Bob Benjamin, organizer of the annual Light of Day concerts that aid in the fight against Parkinson's disease, outside his home, a condominium in a former Highland Park school. Benjamin, now 46, was diagnosed with the disease when he was 38. The shows -- this years's edition takes place tonight through Sunday - - have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars in the fight against Parkinson's and heightened awareness of the disease, thanks to the participation of celebrities such as Michael J. Fox, who also has Parkinson's, and Bruce Springsteen. Fox, like Benjamin, is a hockey enthusiast. "We said when they find a cure for Parkinson's that we were going to have a skate together and play some hockey," said Benjamin of his vow with Fox. Parkinson's disease is a chronic and progressive neurological condition that affects movement and muscle control, according to the Parkinson's Disease Foundation Web site, http://www.pdf.org Doctors are not sure how one gets it, but the disease occurs when cells in the brain that control movement malfunction and eventually die. Symptoms include tremors, rigidity or stiffness of the limbs and trunk, slowness of movement, and postural instability or impaired balance and coordination. The conditions can be treated to a degree with drugs, but for now there is no cure. An estimated 1.5 million Americans have Parkinson's. Benjamin first became aware that something was amiss in 1995. "I had problems with my left arm," said Benjamin, a New Rochelle, N.Y., native who moved to Central New Jersey in the mid-1980s. "I thought it was from typing, carpal tunnel syndrome or something like that." Benjamin saw an orthopedist, neurologist and chiropractor before finally being diagnosed correctly. "In a way it was a relief because I knew that something was going on," Benjamin said. "But it was also a shock. I didn't know people my age got Parkinson's. Only 10 percent of people who get it are under 40." The origin of the Light of Day shows goes back to 1998 when Benjamin, a Jersey Shore music insider, threw himself a 40th birthday party at the Downtown Cafe in Red Bank. Benjamin, born on Nov. 3, took the next year off but then had the first official Light of Day show in 2000 at the Stone Pony. The benefit is named after the song "Light of Day," written by Bruce Springsteen for the 1987 Michael J. Fox movie of the same name. "It's a lot of work but it's fun work," said Benjamin. "Like anything else, I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty and get things done." That would include producing a CD last year of Springsteen covers, "Light Of Day: A Tribute To Bruce Springsteen," by nationally known artists that sold 23,000 copies and raised more than $100,000 for the Parkinson's Disease Foundation. The shows have raised more than $200,000 in the fight against Parkinson's and other neurological diseases, Benjamin said. "He's very proud, but behind the pride is a sweetheart of a guy who is born to do things for people," said musician and Light of Day participant Garland Jeffreys. "He reaches out and does whatever he can. He loves the Light of Day -- he shines. He's taking his illness and working with it." Benjamin works the phone constantly from his Highland Park home/office and coordinates a team of 12 in the weeks leading up to the Light of Day shows. "The work goes on now from 8 in the morning to nighttime," said Benjamin while taking a break in a Highland Park pizzeria. "I've been on the phone calling bands and caterers and hotels." "I'm not going to sit home and feel sorry for myself; I don't really care if anyone thinks I walk funny -- I just go out there and do it." Much of the buzz of the Light of Day shows is generated by speculation of when Springsteen will perform. Benjamin's relationship with the Boss goes back to a lunch with E Street Band members in Buffalo on the eve of the "Darkness on the Edge of Town" tour in 1977. The two have remained friends since, and Springsteen even asked Benjamin's help in choosing songs for his "Tracks" compilation record, released in 1998. Benjamin doesn't know until a day or two before the shows when Springsteen -- who's never been officially listed as a Light of Day performer -- will play. "Bruce came two years ago and I didn't think he was going to come because he had a show the next day in Dallas and he had just come back from Europe the week before," Benjamin said. "I got a call the day before that he wanted to play early that night, so we changed the schedule around and put him on early and he ended staying all night anyway with Gary 'U.S.' Bonds and he still made the show in Dallas the next day. "That was a good feeling." A highlight of last year's shows was Springsteen, Fox and Grushecky jamming on the song "Light of Day." "He's one of the most modest men I've ever met, but he's very creative and he knows a lot of talented people," said Robin Elliott, executive director of the Parkinson's Disease Foundation, of Benjamin. "He quietly delivers." This year's Light of Day is bigger than ever with three shows and a celebrity and sports auction. Visit http://www.lelands.com for more information on the auction. The show tomorrow night is sold out, but tickets are available for tonight and Sunday. "How we deal with the challenges and setbacks in our lives is how we're defined as people," Benjamin said. "You can sit home and feel sorry for yourself or you can go out there and help yourself and other people. That accomplishes a lot more." Fifth annual Light of Day, 6 tonight, 5 p.m. tomorrow (which is sold out) and 3 p.m. Sunday, with Pat DiNizio, La Bamba and the Hubcaps, Jesse Malin, Jeffrey Gaines, Joe Grushecky and the Houserockers, John Easdale and many more. Stone Pony, 913 Ocean Ave., Asbury Park. $50 for single show. (732) 502-0600, http://www.stoneponyonline.com or http://www.lightofday.org Chris Jordan: (732) 565-7275; [log in to unmask] SOURCE: Talk.liveDaily WWWeb: http://tinyurl.com/3wtlh * * * ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn