Westmeath event for Parkinson's Ireland coffee day 'about raising awareness'

The Annebrook Hotel was full of smiles, as Mullingar woman Anne Marie McEvoy took charge of a coffee morning in aid of Parkinson's Ireland on May 30. The coffee day was sponsored by Dovida Ireland, whose €500 donation was added to the €1,000 raised on the day.

Anne Marie was joined by John Ayres, who took part in ‘A Walk in the Park for Parkinson’s’ on April 5. Anne Marie 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 Parkinson’s awareness here in Mullingar, and hopefully we can get this off the ground, and going regularly in the future. These days are 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.”

John Ayres said of the Westmeath event: “This is all about making people aware of Parkinson’s, but it is also about making people with Parkinson’s 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.”