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Rosemary raises an excellent point. It is one of the primary areas where disunity hurts us. No one organization seems to have the resources or desire to put on a large scale, nationwide publicity campaign. Would it not help all of them to contribute to an all inclusive, generic PD Awareness campaign? Of course there are some negatives. Most important is cost! These campaigns are expensive. VERY EXPENSIVE. Do they achieve their goals or just make organizations, patients and families "feel better"? Along with the added expense comes a shift in allocation of resources. Do you want your PD org.s spending relatively more on advertising and less on research and patient services on a percentage basis? My rhetorical answer to this question is a qualified "YES". If the end result is more absolute dollars for PD research & services - GREAT. Just don't be surprised if PR starts taking up a larger piece of the pie chart than it does today. (Take a look at what the Alzheimer's Assoc. spends on PR as a percentage of their budget and you'll get some idea.) PR is extremely expensive - especially on a nationwide scale, so it better be damn good! Can our organizations agree on something of excellent quality? Will one organization take the lead and orchestrate a major campaign? Can we achieve just as much by continuing to make exciting scientific breakthroughs which generate their own publicity? How much is an appearance by Muhammad Ali before Congress worth in PR dollars? How much PR can we generate on a grassroots level and is it perhaps more effective to build up a campaign in local papers? I agree, we need more and better nationwide PR. Just remember it comes with a big fat price tag so it better produce measurable results. The measure? Significantly more money for research (and/or patient services depending on your point of view.) BTW, very excited about news out of the House Appropriations subcommittee. Everybody, reach as far as you can and pat yourself on the back. >I can't help but be disturbed about something I have been noticing for some >time. >As I was thumbing through a popular women's magazine recently, a full page ad >about Multiple Sclerosis caught my eye. Another women's magazine contained a >full page informative ad on Alzheimer's disease from the Alzheimer's >Association. I also discovered two more full page ads (in still other >magazines) --one on Cancer, one on Leukemia, which were both from "America's >Pharmaceutical Companies". >All were very good ads, very informative, and concerned research news, etc... > >My point is: Why don't I ever see ads in magazines about Parkinson's disease? >There is a wealth of advertising and information publicizing MS, Alzheimer's, >Cancer, and heart disease, from various support organizations. Everyone is >familar with these diseases, mainly because of such publicity. This is one >important area where Parkinson's disease is lacking. Few people know even the >basic facts about PD. > >I feel it would help our cause immensly if PD --its research, the fact that it >affects "young people", the Udall bill, and so on......were made more public. >To this end we need the help of our national organizations. National support >in this area is something I would love to see! > >We have all worked hard for the Udall bill, and yet the equally important >issue of PWP becoming more "visable" is always present. We are visable to our >families, friends, and certain members of the medical community...........but >not to the nation as a whole! >Please understand, I am not trying to target any one person or organization. >Perhaps all of the national Parkinson's organizations/foundations/associations >need to be more united in solving this issue. I don't pretend to have the >answer but I know one is within reach. > >Rosemary Russell 50, 4 1/2 yrs. >Little Rock, Arkansas >([log in to unmask]) -Ken Aidekman Visit the Parkinson's Unity Walk website: www.parkinsonwalk.org Fund the Research. Find the Cure.