PFP Care Partner Spotlight
I sat down to interview Michael and Tanya, two of our highly dedicated care partners, still a bit sleepy and bleary eyed at 7:30am Australia time a few weeks ago. Despite being half asleep when our interview started, it didn't take long for me to wake up fully and find myself sitting on the edge of my seat as I listened in awe to Michael and Tanya's stories...
Michael Rhea and his wife Nancy have been living with PD for close to 20 years now and are an integral part of our PFP community. They even helped us find one of our original Austin class locations way back in 2013! It was also in 2013 when Michael nominated himself to take over the support group for care partners of those living with Parkinson's for another Austin PD group, Capital Area Parkinsons. Michael recognized that while care partners needed support they were never able to go along to meetings because they were too busy caring for their loved one with Parkinson's. This was the beginning of Michael's focus on prioritizing care partners' needs and ensuring they were being looked after just as well as those with PD.
From our very first PFP Austin class, Michael was looking for ways to build community and so organized a group lunch for himself, his wife Nancy, and two other participants after class. These group lunches have continued right to this day and grown to over 20 participants. Initially Michael hoped that they would just be a fun outlet for everyone, but they have since taken on great meaning for him as he observed week after week the social interaction bringing forward cognitive healing. The community formed through these lunch groups has extended to parties throughout the year, travel adventures and lifelong friendships!
When the pandemic hit Michael and Nancy immediately noticed that the strong PFP connections were missing from their days and so began Monday Zoom Happy Hour! They haven't missed a single Monday over the last 18 months and have found that making this conscious effort to stay connected has led them to a better quality of life during quarantine.
Along with Monday Zoom Happy Hour, our Austin PFP participants have also been kept busy this last year with weekly outdoor lunch groups run by another one of our beloved care partners - Tenacious Tanya! Tanya, who cares for her father Jim, was initiated into the PFP fold back in the spring of 2016. She met Michael at the very first class she and her father attended and was immediately bombarded with information and invitations from him. Michael has since become a huge role model for Tanya and the two of them combined are an unstoppable force!
Tanya Ong also realized as soon as COVID hit that if the PFP community was going to make it through then some form of socialization was key! So Tanya formed the Brushy Creek Weekly Lunch Group. It was extremely important to her that people felt safe enough to join the group and so she would arrive at Brushy Creek early to clean up the space, put tablecloths over the picnic tables, and make sure there were enough masks and hand sanitizer for everyone. Sometimes the lunch group participants would even join our live classes and exercise together (in a socially distant manner of course!) just like pre-COVID times!
Between the weekly Happy Hour Zoom calls and outdoor lunch group, Michael and Tanya have held our local Austin PFP community together these last 18 months. When I asked them what their drive was they said it was to continuously serve others. They had so much wisdom to share. Both believe hugely in teamwork and lean on each other and other PD care partners a lot to support their community. They both said serving this community fills their cups in a way that not much else does - they strive to keep our PFP participants positive and ensure they feel included and through doing this they feel as if they are making a real contribution and difference to this world. Michael concluded our interview by noting that there comes a point where exercise, therapy and medication will only get you so far...it is attitude which then carries you forward and both Tanya and Michael endeavor to facilitate positive attitudes amongst our participants as they walk through life alongside them.
Michael and Tanya, many of us would be lost without you. Your often unseen contribution to Power for Parkinson's is an absolute gift and we are forever grateful for your support and presence in our lives!
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