Community News

PDF Gala Honors Parkinson’s Scientist and World-Renowned Musician

- May 16 2006

The Parkinson’s Disease Foundation (PDF), a leading national presence in Parkinson’s disease research, patient education and public advocacy, honored two outstanding figures in the Parkinson’s community on Wednesday, May 17 at its annual gala, Bal du Printemps. The honorees – Dr. Stanley Fahn, PDF Scientific Director and Lukas Foss, composer, conductor, pianist and educator who lives with Parkinson’s – represent PDF’s commitment to recognizing and involving all members of the Parkinson’s community in the fight to find the cause(s) of and a cure for the disease.

Dr. Fahn received the Page and William Black Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of his service to the Parkinson’s community for more than three decades as Chief of Movement Disorders at Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC). He is the H. Houston Merritt Professor of Neurology and Director of CUMC’s Center for Parkinson’s Disease and Other Movement Disorders. In addition to publishing ground-breaking PD research (such as a recent landmark study showing that levodopa does not hasten the clinical progression of Parkinson’s and may actually slow it down), Dr. Fahn sees a full schedule of patients, runs conferences, participates in dozens of scientific panels and supervises a group of talented post-doctoral fellows, the future leaders of his field.

As PDF’s Scientific Director, Dr. Fahn plays an integral role in shaping our research and education programs. He was also Chair of the World Parkinson Congress 2006 in Washington, DC, which provided an international forum for the best scientific discoveries, medical practices and caregiver initiatives related to Parkinson's disease.

Dr. Fahn received the award from Dr. Lewis Rowland, President of PDF's Board of Directors and Chairman of the Department of Neurology at Columbia University.

Lukas Foss was presented with the Inaugural Isobel Robins Konecky Creativity Award for his distinguished music career and his strength and courage as a person who lives with Parkinson’s disease. Mr. Foss is the Music Director of the Brooklyn Philharmonic, the Buffalo Philharmonic and the Milwaukee Symphony. He has taught composition at Tanglewood, and has been composer-in-residence at Harvard, the Manhattan School of Music, Carnegie Mellon University, Yale University and presently, Boston University. In 1983, he was elected to the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters, of which he is now a Vice Chancellor. The holder of eight honorary doctorates, he is in constant demand as a lecturer and in 1986 he delivered the prestigious Mellon Lectures at the National Gallery in Washington, DC.

Mr. Foss received the award from Dr. Oliver Sacks, noted neurologist and author of "Awakenings."

For more information on the Parkinson's Disease Foundation’s annual gala, Bal du Printemps, please call (800) 457-6676.

About Parkinson’s disease

Parkinson’s disease is a progressive neurological disorder that affects nearly one million people in the US. Although promising research is being conducted, there is currently no cure for or definitive cause of Parkinson’s disease.

About the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation

The Parkinson’s Disease Foundation (PDF) is a leading national presence in Parkinson’s disease research, patient education and public advocacy. PDF is working for the nearly one million people in the US living with Parkinson’s by funding promising scientific research and supporting people with Parkinson’s, their families and caregivers through educational programs and support services. Since our founding in 1957, PDF has funded more than $50 million worth of scientific research, supporting the work of leading scientists throughout the world. For more information, visit www.pdf.org.

About Bal du Printemps

Bal du Printemps is PDF’s annual black tie gala event, held at New York City’s Pierre Hotel. Every year, philanthropic leaders join together to help raise funds to support PDF’s research programs, as well as to honor outstanding members of the community for their work in the fight against Parkinson’s. This year’s Gala Chairs are Karen Burke Goulandris, M.D., Ph.D. and Isobel Robins Konecky; Honorary Chairs are Page Morton Black and Judith Sulzberger, M.D.; Corporate Chairs are John and Marianne Castle, John and Margo Catsimatidis and Alan and Kathy Greenberg.

Source Date: May 16 2006