If you happened upon a Times Square billboard lit up in blue on World Parkinson’s Day this April—or one of the 700 other blue landmarks, from the National Museum of Costa Rica to the Story Bridge in Brisbane, Australia, spanning nearly 30 countries—you’ve already been touched by PD Avengers. This patient-led organization is on a mission to unite people around the world to demand change, drive progress, and end Parkinson’s disease, and it’s also a proud partner of the Parkinson’s Wellness Foundation. What’s more, PD Avengers president and co-founder Larry Gifford serves on the Michael J. Fox Foundation’s Patient Council alongside PWF co-founder, Derek Bandeen. (Fun fact: both Derek and Larry are proud Canadians!)
Now in its sixth year, PD Avengers began as a conversation among a few strangers at the World Parkinson Congress in 2019 and has since grown into a 10,000-member alliance championing advocacy, access, and partnership across the global Parkinson’s community. Their work has included campaigning for the National Plan to End Parkinson’s Act to become U.S. law, pushing for medication equity in developing countries, and fighting tirelessly to ban the environmental toxin paraquat.
The crown jewel of PD Avengers’ many initiatives is Spark the Night, the annual World Parkinson’s Day campaign that lights up landmarks in blue around the globe to raise awareness and support for the roughly 11 million people living with PD worldwide. On April 11, members of the PWF team snapped selfies in front of the Spark the Night billboard in Times Square to show their support.
PWF is proud to partner with PD Avengers, whose community-centered model for Parkinson’s empowerment reflects our own values. “Both Larry Gifford and PD Avengers are among those that invoke the fierce resolve that I and so many others have needed on our Parkinson’s journeys,” explains Derek. “Parkinson’s is a terrible foe, but PD Avengers and the Parkinson’s Wellness Foundation face it with grit and determination.”
