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Joan, and All.... It's my feeling that when a celebrity comes forth claiming to have been diagnosed with Parkinson's, that it would be better if that individual was NOT immediately showered with "Welcome to the Club" emails/messages from well-intentioned List members and other Parkies. Who knows how long it's been since they were diagnosed? Maybe they're still dealing with some fear and residual denial, despite their brave step in "going public" with their sad news? How many of us, in attempting to share warm feelings of PD-kinship and support with a fellow Parkie and end up actually end up writing a LOOOOONG message sharing everything about their OWN Parkinson's history? Do you REALLY want to do that to someone who has not yet expressed a desire to connect with the online Parkinson's community? Can ANY of us in our wildest dreams even BEGIN to imagine the TREMENDOUS volume of mail a top current celebrity receives on any day? For instance, Oprah Winfry claims to average 15,000 messages a month. Should we PD List Folks rush right now to email a welcome (Errrrr.... provided ya ever finds that email address, Joan) <grinning> to this celebrity - whomever they may be - I suspect the List-member-originated messages will be caught in an avalanche of sympathetic fan mail, which'll be rapidly sorted by a coupla mailroom flunkies. Then the authors of those messages will receive a form letter of thanks and a machine-autographed 8 by 10 glossy photo of the celeb. I'd suggest our List-family make a collective effort NOT to immediately bombard this as yet unknown celebrity with any "welcome to the club," messages or the like for AT LEAST ONE MONTH. Let the public brouhaha arising from the initial news spreading out amongst the Celebes fans run it's natural course. Let them get over THEIR email/snail-mail deluge to the celeb, and THEN, and ONLY then should anyone representing this List or PD, write to the celebrity, BRIEFLY, and with compassion, letting the celeb know the List is available for them. One last thing before I get off my soapbox: Remember - this is not about YOU or ME having PD except as it relates to a common bond many PWPs have for one another... It's about someone ELSE having Parkinson's. We should not, in order to come across as a legitimate online information and support group, all run 'round half-cocked sending messages. FIRST think about the person who's just now making a very public statement about having Parkinson's Disease, and all that THAT implies. Restraint is called for on our part because the celebrity is living THEIR Parkinson's experience, and we are each living ours. They may NOT be ready to fight for the Udall Bill (and indeed, may not even be from the USA) or to hear all about someone's pallidotomy, just because WE are. Barb Mallut (preparing to duck 'n run when this message gets posted) [log in to unmask] -----Original Message----- From: Stan or Joan Snyder <[log in to unmask]> To: Multiple recipients of list PARKINSN <[log in to unmask]> Date: Tuesday, November 24, 1998 9:59 AM Subject: People magazine >Hello all: Isn't it a shame that we must share our disease with yet >another gifted & talented young person? If we are correct in assuming >his identeity, maybe we could all e-mail him (after the article comes >out, naturally). I had his e-mail address a couple of months back and >e-mailed him, begging him that if it were true, to contact us for >support & caring & understanding, not that I think I had anything to do >with any of this announcement! I will get his e-mail adress again and we >could write to tell him of our special place here and the links to the >other sites that we all find so comforting. May God bless him & us all >for the road ahead. > >-- >--- >Joan Snyder (47/10/8) <[log in to unmask]> Peoria,IL >"Do or do not. There is no try." Yoda >http://www.newcountry.nu/pd/members/snyder/page1.htm >