Volunteer profile: Lights, camera ... fight Parkinson's

Sacramento Bee
Published 12:00 am PDT Thursday, May 31, 2007
http://www.sacbee.com/107/v-print/story/199354.html

What: The "Lights, Camera, Auction!" benefit for the Parkinson Association of Northern California.

Where and when: June 16 at the Scottish Rite Masonic Center, 6151 H St.; $75 per person; (916) 489-0226.

The program: Silent auction and no-host bar at 5 p.m., live entertainment and gourmet dinner at 7:15 p.m. Emcee Kitty O'Neal of KFBK will be joined by Armstrong and Getty of KSTE for the live auction. Items auctioned will include a dinner party prepared by chef Kurt Spataro in the top bidder's home.

Big raffle prize: A trip to New York, including airfare, accommodations, tickets to Michael J. Fox's annual gala "A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Cure," and tickets to a Broadway show.

Beneficiary: Funds raised will help with research on Parkinson's disease. The disease, which is not infectious or contagious, occurs when the cells in a part of the brain begin to fail and die off. Motor symptoms that are characteristic of Parkinson's disease, such as tremors and slowness of movement, begin to appear as those cells die off.

Featured volunteer: It was 17 years ago that Chris Hopson was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. "It took about two years for the doctors to diagnose the disease," he said. "I broke my foot, then had to have knee surgery. I had a little bit of a tremor and stiffness in my arm. We tried foot doctors, orthopedic and bone specialists, and we finally had it diagnosed as Parkinson's."

He has had deep brain stimulations. "It has allowed me to travel and take on the presidency of the association. I would like to see a cure for Parkinson's. For now, I recognize my limitations and know what I can do and cannot do," said Hopson.

Before retiring from his position as senior vice president of marketing worldwide for Tower Records, Hopson was honored at a dinner attended by 500 from the industry. It was there that he commented on what could be one