My Parkinson Story | Cheryl Wirtley

My Parkinson Story is a weekly column featuring member of our community, sharing their stories with PD. We are interested in sharing a wide array of experiences, including yours! PD looks different in everyone, and affects everyone differently, including friends and family of those with PD. If you’d like to share your story on our blog, please email us.

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I wanted to share my story about volunteering for Parkinson's Support & Wellness. My diagnosis of Parkinson's came in 2014. At the time, I was a Branch Manager at the Miami Township Library.  I met Chris Gaffney at a support group meeting, and he mentioned his goal of bringing educational classes to the Dayton area. I was already scheduling programs at the library about Parkinson's, so it was a natural connection. Chris and I began meeting and he recommended that I participate on the program committee. 

I love volunteering for the Parkinson's Support & Wellness organization. The programming committee schedules educational programs on a variety of Parkinson's topics. I assist with scheduling speakers. If you are looking for a Parkinson's organization to volunteer for, this is a great community. The people on the program committee are genuine and a pleasure to work with. Everyone has the same mission; bringing educational programs to the Cincinnati, Dayton, and Northern Kentucky areas. There is a sense of belonging and I find many opportunities to learn more about Parkinson's.  I am proud to be volunteering for the Parkinson’s Support & Wellness organization. It allows me to be a part of the Parkinson’s community which I find rewarding.

I recently started a blog, called Inside Parkinson's. Posts are scheduled every Monday and discuss Parkinson's topics and resources.