Team Klavans Top Fund-Raising Team
"A newly traveled road"
By Trina Stokes

left to right: Tom Klavans, Alan Klavans, Christina Klavans,
Anne Casher, Paul Provenzano, and Scott Casher.

When Tom Klavans and Anne Casher were told their father was diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease, they were not unnerved. Instead they looked for answers to their questions. They searched the Internet, read books and found the Parkinson's Unity Walk.

I had the opportunity to speak with the family about this newly traveled road.

When Alan noticed a tremor in his right hand mid-year 2002, he went to his doctor and was told it was a benign essential tremor. The tremor worsened and after further inquiry he went to see a top Neurologist at Mount Sinai in New York for a confirmation. "I went to see the Neurologist specializing in PD, probably because I was in denial," says Alan. He was diagnosed with PD at the age of 63 back in January of this year. "This was a neurological disease we were not familiar with," stated Christina, Alan's wife of over 38 years. "At first you don't know what your fate is for a disease that at this time doesn't have a cure and is progressive," Alan commented.

To provide Alan with the best quality of life at this stage of diagnosis, his neurologist gave him three alternatives. He could choose not to take any medication, take a dopamine agonist or selegiline. "I took the agonist and the side effects were not good at all. My tremor was worse, my entire arm ached, and I couldn't sleep. So, with my doctor's knowledge I went off the agonist. At this time I choose not to take any medication and I'm trying out an exercise regimen recommended by a friend called, Lifewaves."

"Lifewaves has shown interesting results with PD. It is not a cure and makes no such claim. Dr. Irv Dardik developed Lifewaves for the US Olympic Training Center. I'm pretty disciplined about doing the program. The exercise program has helped me improve my voice tone and my tremor, particularly in the morning. It's described as interval training and designed to train the participant in both short periods of exertion and recovery time," Alan noted.

When Anne, Scott (Anne's husband) and Tom were told about the diagnosis they began to find resources on general and specific topics related to Parkinson's disease. "It was kind of a superficial awareness. Yes, we probably knew about PD but we didn't really understand the neurological disease," Tom commented.

"Alan has tremendous amount of character. His response to finding out was amazing. To combat PD the family has been very open to talking and dealing with it, it brings the family together. It is very typical of our family to come together in unity," Scott shared. "No one wants to feel helpless. Dad is very active and he would never take that course," said Tom.

"Anne steered us to the Unity Walk, and it was a tremendous opportunity and a benefit, the kids have been so supportive. The Walk provided us resources on patient education, clinical research, and books about Parkinson's disease." Christina noted. "We all wanted to be proactive and the research Anne and Scott has done has given my Father an outlet. I picked-up the book by Abraham Lieberman 100 Questions & Answers about Parkinson Disease," says Tom. "More information is empowering. It's important to seek positive resources, exercise and have support. Attending the Walk was the family's first exposure to this other world. We felt like we were apart of it and the Walk portrayed a wonderful sense of community, like we were all sharing in this fight to raise awareness and fund research," Scott remarked.

"I'm proud of my Dad. I wasn't sure how he would feel about the Unity Walk, but he was all for it. He wanted to get information to learn more about PD and what he could do about it," says Anne. "Yes, the question that came around was, how could we gain more knowledge about this disease? The latitude was important to our family and the Walk provided this channel of hope." Alan explained.

Anne went on to say, "the Web site provided a wealth of information. It was very easy to set up our team homepage and start assembling our team. I found it to be very user friendly. One or two of our friends didn't feel comfortable donating online, so they printed the offline donation form and mailed in their checks. Dad sent the most beautiful letter to his family and friends to notify them of the Unity Walk and how they could help."

"Parkinson's Disease isn't a life or death situation, most families can endure this disease. We need more awareness, like people are aware of cancer. It's not a fatal disease there are survivors. The disease affects Mothers, Fathers, young people, and society as a whole; it's not just an old person's disease. Society needs more knowledge about PD and the fact that over 1 million people have Parkinson's," said Alan.

Alan went on to say. "I hope that the cause of PD can be found, so that many who live with the uncertainty of the rate of progression can have some hope. Research is the answer and that means money, lots of money, private or public. This means that awareness is essential."

This family is truly inspiring. Anne, Scott and Tom also agreed that Alan is a noble role model. Alan Klavans was born and raised in Norfolk, Virginia. He served in the Army for six years on active duty, including a tour with US Army Special Forces in Vietnam. He met is wife of 38 years, Christina whom is from Stockholm Sweden. Alan is an avid Tennis Player. On Friday, August 29th Anne and Scott Casher had a healthy baby girl, Mia Alexandra. This is the Klavans first grandchild. Congratulations to the family!