A4 • HERMISTONHERALD.COM
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 13, 2022
OPINION READER’S FORUM
Founded in 1906
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 13, 2022
A4
OUR VIEW
Club, community support cannot be tamed
W
ednesday, April 6, Bill
Kuhn stood up in front
of the Hermiston Lions
Club and received The Helen Keller
Benefactor Award for 15 years of ser-
vice to his club’s sight and hearing
committee.
This moment occurred at the most
recent Lions meeting, and it was
intended to recognize Kuhn for his
work in helping to bring glasses,
hearing aids, tests and surgery to area
residents in need. Under Kuhn, the
club has helped hundreds of people.
As special as the award ceremony
was, however, it does not tell the full
story of Kuhn, who has worked on
many causes since he started as a
Lion in 1976. Nor does it give a com-
plete picture of the club itself, which
is also amazing.
In Thursday’s meeting, the Lions
pledged donations of $31,500.
Causes are the Agape House, Sweet
Potato Closet, Made to Thrive, the
Salvation Army, Meals on Wheels
and more. Money given by the club
will feed the hungry and shelter the
Erick Peterson/Hermiston Herald
Dave Nevin and Bill Kuhn, Hermiston Lions Club members, pose next to a banner for their club
on April 6, 2022. Kuhn had just received an award for having served the Lions in sight and
hearing causes for 15 years.
homeless and clothe the needy.
The list of donation recipients
includes some things to make our
community more fun, too. The Herm-
iston Little League will get $475 and
Funland receives $3,000 under the
Lions’ plans.
The club is able to pay this money
thanks to the fundraising of its mem-
bers. Chowder and fl ower sales are
part of this bounty, as are grants.
And this is not the end of the
club’s generosity. It is constantly
busy organizing scholarships, plan-
ning events and helping people in
need.
The list of the Lions’ good deeds is
long and getting longer, and the same
goes for the kindly acts of its presi-
dent. An accounting of it all becomes
nearly impossible to calculate. But
even if such a list were to be made, it
is only part of the picture, still. Kuhn
and his Lions are just one of sev-
eral organizations doing good in our
community.
Hermiston, Umatilla, Stanfi eld,
Irrigon, Echo and Boardman each
has clubs and residents who go above
and beyond to help people in need.
We are indebted to such people for
their charity and for their example.
As we face diffi cult roads ahead, they
will be evermore important to us all.
COLUMN
There is a lot to know about Parkinson’s Disease
CAROL
CLUPNY
SHAKING HANDS
W
hen introduced, it’s
common for two peo-
ple to shake hands.
Most noticeable about this brief
interaction is the grip of the hand-
shake and how long the hands
remain engaged.
I recently met someone who
knew something about me prior to
our fi rst encounter.
“I heard you have Parkinson’s.
You look great. Your hands don’t
even shake,” she said.
“Well, yes, I do have Parkinson’s.
And tremors in my hands in not one
of my symptoms. I have to work
hard to look this good,” I replied.
April is Parkinson’s awareness
month.
Almost everyone knows some-
body with the disease. I usually
hear “My grandpa had that,“ or
“My aunt has that.”
It’s a good time to educate. Par-
kinson’s disease is a neurodegen-
erative disorder aff ecting the dopa-
mine-producing neurons in the
substantia nigra portion of the brain.
By the time a person is diag-
nosed with the disease, 70-80%
of these dopamine makers have
ceased working. We know that
exercise, nutrition and medica-
tion may slow the progression, but
there is no cure for this disease.
It is now the fastest-grow-
ing neurological disease in the
US with a new diagnosis made
every nine minutes. Parkinson’s
was previously considered an
“old person disease,” with most
identifi cations made after age 60.
The Parkinson’s age of diagno-
sis has dropped with many “young
onsets” demonstrating symptoms
between 45-55. I was fi fty.
When we think of Parkinson’s,
we get a picture of a hunched over
older man. As he shuffl es along,
we see his hands tremor. He has
stiff ness and rigidity, and trou-
ble balancing. He might have
trouble swallowing, soft speech,
depression, anxiety or any one of
approximately 50 symptoms.
“Wait a minute. I just shook
your hand. You said don’t tremor,”
my new friend commented.
The phrase “When you have
seen one person with Parkinson’s
you’ve seen one person with Par-
kinson’s” describes the disease.
There are many symptoms, and no
two patients are exactly alike”.
I had my own set of symp-
toms. I was referred to a move-
ment disorder specialist at
Oregon Health and Science Uni-
versity. She told me I had 5-7
years before my life would get
tough. It’s been 14 years. Yes,
it’s tough but bearable. Exercise
is top on the list for treatment. I
took up bike riding and now you
see me pedaling around town on
a bright yellow recumbent trike
with a roadrunner fl ag.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Wake up, America
It was not so long ago that much
loved Democrat President John F. Ken-
nedy told the nation in his 1961 inaugu-
ral address, “Ask not what our country
can do for you, ask what you can do for
your country,” implying a sense of self
sacrifi ce was needed by all Americans
to keep the torch of freedom burning
bright in a world fi lled with tyranny.
This was an idea most could relate to
regardless of political affi liation.
But times have changed, and modern
liberal philosophy has become almost
unrecognizable to previous generations.
It can be more accurately described as
“Forget personal sacrifi ce, keep sitting
on your behind and let the government
rob your neighbor for you.”
I would ask you to read Kennedy’s
speech, which he referred to God and
the people in his speech. He said, “the
belief that the rights of man come not
from the generosity of the state, but
from the hand of God.”
When was the last time you heard a
political speech from a Democrat pol-
itician mention God in their speeches?
It has been 61 years since President
Kennedy made that speech, and I was
a Democrat at the time, now each and
every Democrat political priority can
be broken down to a simple concept:
They are all designed to take money
and power away from individuals, fam-
ilies, communities, businesses, chari-
ties and states and transfer it directly to
the federal government. I changed my
political party affi liation in 2016, and
I would encourage the decent Dem-
ocrats of America to think long and
hard for which party you choose to live
under. You have until April 26 to change
your voting registration in the state of
Oregon.
Kathy Wilson
Pendleton
The burden of Alzheimer’s
The number of Americans living
with Alzheimer’s is growing — and
growing fast.
According to the Alzheimer’s
Association 2022 Alzheimer’s Dis-
ease Facts and Figures report, more
than 6 million Americans of all ages
have Alzheimer’s. In Oregon, there
are more than 69,000 people living
with Alzheimer’s disease and more
than 130,000 family members and
friends providing care.
As a daughter who watched her
VOLUME 115 • NUMBER 15
Andrew Cutler | Publisher • acutler@hermistonherald.com • 541-278-2673
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Audra Workman | Offi ce Manager • aworkman@eastoregonian.com • 541-564-4538
Tammy Malgesini | Community Editor • community@eastoregonian.com • 541-564-4532
The Hermiston Herald (USPS 242220, ISSN
8750-4782) is published weekly at Hermiston
Herald, 333 E. Main St., Hermiston, OR 97838,
541-567-6457.
█
Carol Clupny has lived in Hermiston for 42
years. She is the author of “The Ribbon of Road
Ahead: One Woman’s Remarkable Journey with
Parkinson’s Disease.”
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I had a deep brain stimulation
procedure in 2016 which gave
me an electrical boost. I faithfully
take my medication and communi-
cate with my doctor about what’s
working. And I socialize with a
very fun group of people with Par-
kinson’s who meet monthly to
learn a little and laugh a lot.
I look forward to meeting new
people, here in Hermiston or on
my travels promoting my book.
Watch out when we shake hands.
If you comment that I don’t shake
when I shake, you’ll get an earful
about Parkinson’s disease.
Periodical postage paid at Hermiston, OR.
Postmaster, send address changes to
Hermiston Herald, 333 E. Main St.,
Hermiston, OR 97838.
Member of EO Media Group Copyright ©2022
father suff er, battle and die from Alz-
heimer’s, I have seen fi rsthand how
cruel and devastating Alzheimer’s is
on an individual, the family and the
community. My mother served as my
father’s caregiver. The emotional,
physical and fi nancial stress of this
disease on caregivers also is a crucial
issue. My family and I have experi-
enced the Alzheimer’s Association’s
resources as a lifeline of hope and a
reminder that we are not alone.
Through this we’ve also grasped
the depth and reality of how Alzhei-
mer’s aff ects so many people like us,
too many people. The association
brings hope and support to all of us.
In recent years Congress has made
funding Alzheimer’s research a pri-
ority and it must continue. It is my
hope that Sens. Ron Wyden and Jeff
Merkley, and Rep. Cliff Bentz will
support increasing funding for Alz-
heimer’s research at the NIH by $226
million for the 2023 fi scal year.
To learn more about the Alz-
heimer’s Association, available
resources and how you can get
involved in the fi ght to end Alzhei-
mer’s, visit alz.org/advocate.
Jennifer Chance
Redmond
CORRECTIONS
It is the policy of the Hermiston Herald to correct errors as soon as
they are discovered. Incorrect information will be corrected on Page
A2. Errors committed on the Opinion page will be corrected on that
page. Corrections also are noted in the online versions of our stories.
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SUBMIT A LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Letters Policy: Letters to the Editor is a forum for the Hermiston
Herald readers to express themselves on local, state, national or
world issues. Brevity is good, but longer letters should be kept to
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person. The Hermiston Herald reserves the right to edit letters for
U.S. PRESIDENT
JOE BIDEN
U.S. REPRESENTATIVE
CLIFF BENTZ
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
NW
Washington, DC 20500
Comments: 202-456-1111
Switchboard: 202-456-1414
whitehouse.gov/contact/
1239 Longworth House
Offi ce Building
Washington, DC 20515
Phone: (202) 225-6730
Fax: (202) 225-5774
Ontario offi ce: Phone:
(541) 709-2040
U.S. SENATORS
RON WYDEN
STATE REP. GREG
SMITH,
DISTRICT 57
221 Dirksen Senate Offi ce
Bldg.
Washington, DC 20510
202-224-5244
La Grande offi ce: 541-962-
7691
•
JEFF MERKLEY
313 Hart Senate Offi ce
Building
Washington, DC 20510
202-224-3753
Pendleton offi ce: 541-278-
1129
900 Court St. NE, H-482
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1457
Email: Rep.GregSmith@
state.or.us
———
STATE SEN. BILL
HANSELL,
DISTRICT 29
900 Court St. NE, S-423
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1729
Email: Sen.BillHansell@
state.or.us
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