The Numbers Are In: The 2004 Parkinson's Parkinson Alliance Sets a New One-Year Record Raising Over $900,000 for Parkinson's Research

New York City, New York
July 5, 2004

On April 24th, 2004 in NYC's Central Park, Margot Zobel , Michael J. Fox, and Kenneth Aidekman proudly cut the ribbon to mark the start of the 2004 Parkinson's Parkinson Alliance. Under glorious, sunny skies, over 7,000 people gathered to help raise awareness and funds for Parkinson's research. The donations are now calculated, and the Parkinson's Parkinson Alliance is proud to announce that everyone's collective efforts resulted in a new one-year record-breaking total of over $900,000 raised for Parkinson's research. This is an 80% increase over funds raised last year.

From its historic beginning ten years ago, when approximately $16,000 was raised by some 200 people at the first Parkinson's Parkinson Alliance, Founder Margot Zobel pledged that every penny would go directly to Parkinson's research. With that pledge the seeds were planted, and each year the Parkinson's Parkinson Alliance continues to see more growth in Parkinson's awareness, the numbers of Walk participants, and the amount of donations for Parkinson's research. And, as pledged since the inception of the Walk, every penny of the over $900,000 raised will go directly to Parkinson's research. This is made possible through the individual research foundations that fund the Parkinson Alliance's operating expenses and through the Walk's generous corporate sponsors, including its 2004 premier sponsors, Boehringer Ingelheim and Pfizer, and other corporate sponsors, Novartis, Bertek Pharmaceuticals, Inc., and Medtronic, Inc.

All funds raised from the Walk are designated for research and will be distributed among the major U.S. Parkinson's disease foundations, including the American Parkinson Disease Association, the National Parkinson Foundation, The Parkinson Alliance, the Parkinson's Disease Foundation, the Parkinson's Institute, the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research, and the Parkinson's Action Network.

For more information, please contact the Parkinson's Parkinson Alliance at 633 Third Avenue, 27th Floor, New York, New York 10017; Phone: (toll free) 1-866-PUW-WALK (1-866-789-9255; Fax: 609-688-0875; E-mail: info@unitywalk.org; Web: www.unitywalk.org.