Parkinson's Ireland hold coffee day at the Annebrooke

The Annebrooke Hotel was full of smiles, as Mullingar Woman Anne Marie McEvoy took charge of a coffee morning in aid of Parkinson's Ireland, on Friday, May 30.

The coffee day was sponsored by Dovida Ireland, who kindly donated €500, along with the other €1000 raised on the day.

Anne was joined by John Ayres on the day, who took part in ‘A Walk in the Park for Parkinson's’ on April 5.

Anne Marie, delighted with how the coffee morning turned out, said: “I am overwhelmed with the attendance and with Mullingar as a town, the people and businesses in Mullingar have been so generous.

“This is such a big day for Parkinsons' awareness here in Mullingar, and hopefully we can get this off the ground, and going regularly in the future.

“These days are so important to get the word out there, for people who have been diagnosed with Parkinson's.

“We can help reassure them, making it clear that it's not the end of the road, you die with Parkinson's, not from it.

“It's all about being positive, you can do it through dancing, exercise, peer motivation, or just something as simple as meeting people for a coffee, like today.”

Speaking on the importance of the coffee days, John Ayres said: “This is all about making people aware of Parkinson's, but it is also about making people with Parkinsons aware of what we can help them do, with regards to social outings, fitness and speech therapy.

“We just want people to know that it's not the end of the road, there is help out there, and there are things that you can do to help prolong Parkinson's.”