Stratford Parkinson’s fundraiser nearing $80,000 goal

Amanda Harrison, Ron Harrison, Rod Harrison and Britt Harrison at this year’s Stratford walk. The Harrison family walk every year for Parkinson’s.

As September nears its end, the fundraiser for people living with Parkinson’s and their families is almost at its goal.

The annual Stratford and Area Walk for Parkinson’s, organized by the Parkinson’s Society Southwestern Ontario, took place on Sept. 6 and 7 with a goal of $80,000. Still raising funds, the pool is at 77 per cent filled, at $61,788 as of press time.

There are two Shakespeare families who have been doing their part for years in supporting the walking fundraiser, the Schafers and the Harrisons.

This year, “Team Kathy Schafer” and “Team Ron Harrison” were walking after obtaining thousands of dollars again from relatives, friends and neighbours, who feel for the many across the province that need all the help available from the Parkinson’s Society Southwestern Ontario.

Parkinson’s is a complex neurodegenerative disease which manifests in different ways. It can induce tremors or rigidity, as well as cognitive impairment, to name just a few symptoms – though everyone’s Parkinson’s journey is different.

More than 110,000 people in Canada are living with the disease.

With walks like the one in Stratford every year, families raise money to help their loved ones and strangers across the nation, as well as raise money to one day find a cure.

For more information on the walk, and to donate, visit https://www.walkforpd.ca/site/TR?fr_id=1565&pg=entry.