The Walk the State Challenge just started! There are
14 teams &
96 participants
from across NE
… including our very own board members! Ted Wuebben and Ryan Cary are taking the challenge literally and will be cycling across the state to Tie the State Together.
Ted will start in Omaha, ride up to Norfolk, and take the Cowboy Trail to Valentine. Ryan will be starting in Scottsbluff and riding east to meet Ted in Valentine where they will be checking in with us during the Walk the State Virtual Event on Sunday, September 13th (Register here).
So far, we have raised over $9,500 of our $15,000 goal from 82 donors! We are blown away by the enthusiasm and support from our amazing community. Please help us reach our goal by making a donation and sharing our Walk the State fundraising page!
The Nebraska Television Create TV Fitness Shows bring exercise straight into your living room! The stretching and yoga classes are a great way to keep active & moving.
Fitness Shows Descriptions
Classical Stretch: The Esmonde Technique Host Miranda Esmonde-White performs her graceful routines in picturesque locations, incorporating a variety of standing, sitting, barre and floor routines.
Classical Stretch: By Essentrics Former professional ballerina Miranda Esmonde-White helps people of all ages and fitness levels rebalance their bodies, increase mobility, and keep joints healthy and pain-free.
Happy Yoga with Sarah Starr Certified yoga instructor Sarah Starr guides viewers through an invigorating, fun and accessible yoga routine.
Yoga In Practice Stacey Millner-Collins teaches the foundations of yoga to the at-home student Each episode focuses on a universal theme and includes basic meditation and breathing techniques.
View the NET Create TV website here. Click Change Your Station and enter your zip code to see the Fitness Schedule in your area.
These shows help overcome the barriers of Internet access and technology many Nebraskans with PD face. Please share this resource with your friends and family who are not online!
Walk the State Virtual Event Agenda
August 23, 2020
Rock Steady Boxing
Rock Steady Boxing is an exercise program that gives people with Parkinson’s disease hope by improving their quality of life through a non-contact boxing based fitness curriculum. Join us as Tina and Sam from the Norfolk Family YMCA lead us through some Rock Steady Boxing! Learn more here.
Parkinson Voice Project
Gwen Nolan is the Clinical Outreach Coordinator for the Parkinson Voice Project and will be sharing information about the effects of Parkinson’s disease on speech, voice, and swallowing and the SPEAK OUT! and Loud Crowd programs. Learn more about Gwen and the Parkinson’s Voice Project here.
Voicing Exercises
Voicing exercises are designed to strengthen the muscles needed for speech & swallowing. Amy Renken, MS, CCC-SLP will be leading us in a voicing class to strengthen these muscles and practice speaking with INTENT! Learn more here.
Registration for the Walk the State Virtual event is open! The event is free, but registration is required.
Contact Amber at amber@parkinsonsnebraska.org with any questions. Thank you!
Norfolk Family YMCA to lead Rock Steady Boxing to the Walk the State Virtual Event
August 22, 2020
We are thrilled to announce that Tina and Sam from the Norfolk Family YMCA will be leading a Rock Steady Boxing movement break during the Walk the State Virtual Event!
Rock Steady Boxing, a 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization, gives people with Parkinson’s disease hope by improving their quality of life through a non-contact boxing based fitness curriculum.
The exercises are largely adapted from boxing drills. Boxers condition for optimal agility, speed, muscular endurance, accuracy, hand-eye coordination, footwork and overall strength to defend against and overcome opponents.
Rock Steady Boxing at the Norfolk Family YMCA
The Norfolk Family YMCA started the Rock Steady Boxing classes in the spring of 2018. Since then, the class has grown and is a staple in the Norfolk Parkinson’s community. Check out these articles about the class from the Norfolk Daily News and WGAJ, including this update.
We are so grateful to have such a great program serving the Norfolk area! Register for the Walk the State Virtual Event to join Tina and Sam!
We are excited to announce that Amy Renken, MS CCC-SLP will be leading a Voice & Cognition class during the Walk the State Virtual Event.
Amy is a speech pathologist with over 25 years experience in the acute care and outpatient setting. She has a special interest in MS and PD as well as other related neurological disorders. Amy has been treating speech and swallowing disorders related to PD since the start of her career and trained in the SPEAK OUT! program in 2015. She currently offers tele SPEAK OUT! treatment and teaches wellness classes for the PD community.
Amy will lead us in voicing exercises to strengthen the muscles used for speech and swallowing AND we will practice speaking with INTENT! Everyone deserves to be heard!!
The voicing exercises will follow the Parkinson Voice Project presentation and connect many of the concepts. Please join us on Sunday, September 13th! The event is free, but registration is required.
Our board members are more committed than ever to increasing services and spreading awareness across Nebraska. They are proving their commitment by taking the Walk the State Challenge literally and are cycling across Nebraska!
Ted Wuebben and Ryan Cary from our board will be riding, camping, and spreading awareness across the state for the Tying the State Together journey. Ted will start in Omaha, Ryan will start in Scottsbluff, and they will ride to meet each other in the middle at Valentine, NE!
They will be camping in towns and spreading Parkinson’s awareness to communities along their path. Will they be stopping near you? Check out their route map below:
Ted will begin in Omaha on September 5th, make his way up to Norfolk, and follow the Cowboy Trail 192 miles west to Valentine, NE.
“I am riding for all the people counting on us to continue providing services and develop ones in the future. I am riding for my family who have helped so much on this program over the last 12 and a half years, and for Helen, Monnie, and Colleen who started this journey and whose courage and determination is inspiring… Our tag line is a journey shared we want people to know they are NOT alone living with this disease.” – Ted Wuebben
Ryan will be driving out to start his journey in Scottsbluff on September 11th. He will be heading to 138 miles through Hays Spring and Cody to meet Ted in Valentine.
The Tying the State Together journey will kick off on Saturday, September 5th with a commencement ride led by Honorary Rider Dr. Howard Gendelman from UNMC. The riders, along with friends and family, will be taking off from the Parkinson’s Nebraska office on 168th and Blondo in Omaha. Watch the commencement kick-off live on our Facebook page on Saturday, September 5th at 9:30 am.
You can support the Tying the State Together journey by donating to the board campaign!
Thank you so much to Heritage Communities for sponsoring Ted’s Tying the State Together journey and H&H Chevrolet for sponsoring Ryan’s journey!
The Parkinson Voice Project to speak at the Walk the State Virtual Event
August 16, 2020
We are so excited to announce that Gwen Nolan from the Parkinson Voice Project will be joining us as the educational speaker during the Walk the State Virtual Event on Sunday, September 13th!
The Parkinson Voice Project is nonprofit organization with the mission to preserve the voices of individuals with Parkinson’s and related neurological disorders through intensive speech therapy, follow-up support, research, education, and community awareness.
Gwen is a the Clinical Outreach Coordinator and has over 15 years of practice as a speech-language pathologist specializing in the evaluation and treatment of adult neurogenic speech-language, voice, cognitive-communication, and swallowing disorders in acute, rehabilitation, outpatient clinic, skilled nursing, long-term care, home health, and university clinical settings. in acute, rehabilitation, outpatient clinic, skilled nursing, long-term care, home health, and university clinical settings.
She will be sharing information about the effects of Parkinson’s disease on speech, voice, and swallowing and expected trends will be discussed. Parkinson Voice Project’s therapy approach using SPEAK OUT!® and The LOUD Crowd will be explained, and a brief history of Parkinson Voice Project, our mission, and Pay-It-Forward model will be presented.
Please join us on Sunday, September 13th at 9:30 am to learn more about speech & Parkinson’s disease, movement and voice breaks, and more!
Thank you to the Parkinson Voice Project for speaking at the Walk the State Virtual Event and continued support of the Nebraska Parkinson’s community! See you at the event!
Strictly Business features Walk the State Challenge
August 12, 2020
Did you see the August issue of Strictly Business Omaha and Strictly Business Lincoln?
If you did, you might have seen the latest article on the Walk the State Challenge!
Contact Amber at amber@parkinsonsnebraska.org with any questions.
Walk the State T-shirts
August 11, 2020
Wow!
Take a look at the shirts for this year’s Walk the State Challenge and Virtual Event. We are excited to offer 4 color options so everyone can support the Nebraska Parkinson’s community in style.
T-shirts will be on sale until Wednesday, September 16th and the order will be placed the following day. Make sure to order yours before it’s too late!
All Walk the State teams that raise at least $455 dollars will all get a free event shirt! We will be contacting team leaders after the event to get qualifying team shirt sizes. You can help your favorite team get a t-shirt by donating to their campaign!
If you would like an event t-shirt but have a financial difficulty, please contact Amber at amber@parkinsonsnebraska.org.
Walk the State Team Prizes
August 11, 2020
This year we are giving away two team prizes – one to the team that submits the most miles and the team raffle prize winner!
Team Miles Prize
The team that submits the most miles will win a virtual Painting Party! We will send the winning team members a “paint pack’ with individual acrylic paint, paint brushes, and a 16-in wooden Nebraska state cut-out.
Our very own Georgie Kuhl will be leading the group through a fun virtual painting session on Zoom! Georgie has served people with Parkinson’s sine 2013, including classes such as painting at the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Center.
This will be a fantastic opportunity for teams to safely connect, engage, and enjoy time with each other after the event.
Raffle Prize
Teams that raise $500 will be entered into a raffle and will receive an extra entry for every additional $250 raised. The winning team will win a virtual cooking class! We will send team members a recipe and ingredients right to your door for an evening of cooking together.
Ashley Remington with PDWELL will lead the group in learning how to cook a healthy, delicious meal. She has led other cooking classes from the PDWELL cooking kitchen and is excited to get the group together for a good time over good food!
Good luck to all of the teams! The winners will be announced during the Walk the State Virtual Event on Sunday, September 12th from 9:30 – 11:30 am. Not registered yet? Register at https://bit.ly/30F181h.
Help your favorite team win a prize by sharing some encouragement with them and donating to their team page.
