2 days ago
$10k to fight Parkinson's
The Rotary Club of Gore has made a donation to the tune of $10,000 for Parkinson's research, hoping the grand gesture will go a long way.
Treasurer Graeme Lynn said the club had a bit in the coffer after selling cattle raised by Rotary members, as well as pea straw and potatoes, and wanted it to go to a good cause.
"I suppose we didn't want to accumulate a lot of funds, and our president Russell [Welsh] saw a need there because he had friends with Parkinson's.
"We knew of people in the community who had Parkinson's. It's quite a condition and it just seems to sneak up on people," he said.
Where the money would go was a different question, as the club felt just handing over $10,000 towards any charity may not be the best use of such a sum.
Mr Lynn said a member of the club came to the rescue, with a meaningful place for the money to make a difference.
"Suddenly out of the blue one of our members suggested giving money for research, meaningful research, and then we heard about Louise [Parr-Brownlie]," he said.
The money was presented to Prof Louise Parr-Brownlie from the University of Otago, an internationally recognised researcher who looks into the condition.
The club was impressed by Prof Parr-Brownlie's work in the field, as well as her PhD and New Zealand Order of Merit, and felt it was the right call.
Prof Parr-Brownlie's work at the university uses animal models to understand brain activity, exploring the link between the human brain and the gut by using compounds and dietary changes to explore Parkinson's further.
Prof Parr-Brownlie was extremely appreciative of the club for the donation.
"It makes a huge difference. I cannot explain how much the money helps. It helps us perform the parts of the experiments we can't really afford to do.
"I would just like to say thank you.
"The opportunity came out of the blue. It's just very, very valuable," she said.
