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^^^^^^WARM GREETINGS FROM^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Ivan Suzman 48/12 [log in to unmask] Portland, Maine Land of lighthouses 51 deg. F ******************************************************************** >On Tue, 29 Sep 1998 15:53:16 EDT "Edie Luther." <[log in to unmask]> >writes: >>Thanks for your kudos, Ivan....(SNIP)...... >>filming was done at my home.(SNIP)...... >> >>I really don't see what your golf segment would accomplish, as this >>interview >>covered the young parkinson. >> >>Edie >Hi Edie, > > You seem to raise two issues .....(SNIP) > People in general just don't have the information or the personal >experience to UNDERSTAND Parkinson's, and its many variations(SNIP) . ... The significance of being filmed at a golf course, on location, is >that >it depicts the ACTIVE mode, it shows me outdoors, putting golf balls. >Of course, my wrists and hands are looser on the hand grip, I am >wearing high-top sneakers with deeply-indented rubber soles for >traction and support, and my gait across the golf green is slow and >cautious. > Plus, I was shown sandwiched between the McGwire and Sosa story and >the commercial break, with the headline of "GOLFING ACHIEVEMENT!" >This was great, because I was depicted as a local amateur sports hero, >who had braved the adversity of 12 years of PD (I wore a "No >Parkinson's" pin on my cap, so there was absolutely no doubt that my >visible disability is indeed Parkinson's). > I feel that the sports fans who are so tuned to injuries and the >competitive spirit enjoyed seeing the segment, learned something about >a subject that NEVER usually penetrates the macho world of >professional sports. The sports commentator even closed the taped >segment -only about 45 seconds long, with a very personal >"Congratulations, Ivan" to the 60,000 viewers at 6pm and to the >20,000 late-night, 11 pm viewers. > She talked about PD and other diseases, at the end of the later >newscast, at 11:29, with Kim Block, the News Anchorwoman. Kim said I >was an inspiration, and now people have telling me on the phone today >that they want to know how they can help us PD'ers. > So I used the golf tournament as a way to open the door a little >wider >for all of us. > Ivan 48/12 >