The Edmond J. Safra National Parkinson's Wellness Initiative Launched by The National Parkinson Foundation, NYU Langone Medical Center, and The Jewish Community Center in Manhattan

MIAMI, Sept. 17, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ --The National Parkinson Foundation (NPF) announced today a joint program with the NYU Langone Parkinson's and Movement Disorders Center and The Jewish Community Center (JCC) in Manhattan to launch The Edmond J. Safra National Parkinson's Wellness Initiative. With generous support from the Edmond J. Safra Philanthropic Foundation, this new initiative will launch in four U.S. cities across the country by 2016, and is designed to help improve the quality of life of thousands of individuals impacted by Parkinson's disease through physical exercise, support, education, and socialization opportunities.

This national initiative builds upon the Edmond J. Safra Parkinson's Wellness Program-NYC, a ground-breaking, community-based partnership founded in 2007 by the NYU Langone Parkinson's and Movement Disorders Center and The JCC in Manhattan.

Jewish Community Centers across the country will be invited to apply to participate in the initiative, and those chosen will be provided with a grant to develop a Parkinson's wellness program in their cities.  Two sites will be selected for launch in 2015 with two more to follow in 2016. 

"The National Parkinson Foundation has long shared the Edmond J. Safra Philanthropic Foundation's belief in the importance of a holistic approach to fighting the disease," said Joyce Oberdorf, NPF's President and CEO. "We are delighted to extend this innovative program that combines the benefits of expert care with wellness in a unique fashion."

In collaboration with Jewish Community Centers and NPF Centers of Excellence across the country, the mission of this national initiative will be to place wellness within reach of individuals and families affected by Parkinson's. Unique among Parkinson's programs, it takes an evidence-based approach and connects the expert care of a NPF Center of Excellence with intentional wellness, through physical exercise, education, and support in community settings. The program's low-cost services will be open to anyone with Parkinson's.

"The goal of this new initiative will be to help build energetic, connected, and empowered local communities for individuals and families living with Parkinson's nationwide," said Amy C. Lemen, Managing Director of The Edmond J. Safra National Parkinson's Wellness Initiative, and Associate Director of Community Services at NYU Langone Parkinson's and Movement Disorders Center. "The New York City program has become a welcoming hub for the Parkinson's community. We're excited to have the opportunity to help more and more people with a program that is redefining what it means to live well with Parkinson's."

"The JCC in Manhattan is proud to work with the NYU Langone Parkinson's and Movement Disorders Center and we look forward to partnering with NPF to expand opportunities for wellness for individuals with Parkinson's throughout the country and beyond," said Rabbi Joy Levitt, Executive Director of the JCC in Manhattan.

"When he was sick with Parkinson's, my husband Edmond would tell me, 'Darling, please always protect my dignity.' I am proud to support programs such as The Edmond J. Safra National Parkinson's Wellness Initiative, which focus on enhancing quality of life and treating each patient as a human being with inherent dignity. I know my husband would have been deeply honored to have his name linked with such an important effort," said Mrs. Lily Safra, Chairwoman of the Edmond J. Safra Philanthropic Foundation.

For more information about The Edmond J. Safra National Parkinson's Wellness Initiative, call the NPF Helpline at 1-800-4PD-INFO (473-4636).

About Parkinson's Disease (PD)
Affecting an estimated one million Americans and four to six million worldwide, Parkinson's is the second most common neurodegenerative disease after Alzheimer's and is the 14th leading cause of death in the United States. It is associated with a progressive loss of motor control (e.g., shaking or tremor at rest and lack of facial expression) as well as non-motor symptoms (e.g., depression and anxiety). There is no cure for PD and 60,000 new cases are diagnosed each year in the United States alone.

About the Edmond J. Safra Philanthropic Foundation
The Edmond J. Safra Foundation supports hundreds of projects related to science and medicine, education, religion, culture and humanitarian relief in over 40 countries. The Foundation has provided significant funding for Parkinson's disease research  and patient care at dozens of hospitals and institutes in places as varied as Natal (Brazil), Toronto, New York, Grenoble, Paris, London, and Jerusalem. For more information, visit www.edmondjsafra.org.  

About the National Parkinson Foundation (NPF)
Founded in 1957, the National Parkinson Foundation's mission is to improve the quality of care for people with Parkinson's disease through research, education, and outreach. NPF has funded more than $180 million in care, research and support services. NPF Centers of Excellence, at top medical institutes, includes 39 centers that deliver care to more than 50,000 Parkinson's patients. For more information, visit www.parkinson.org, or call the NPF Helpline at 1-800-4PD-INFO (473-4636).

About the NYU Langone Parkinson's and Movement Disorders Center
The Parkinson's and Movement Disorders Center at NYU Langone Medical Center was established in 2007 with the generous support of the Edmond J. Safra Philanthropic Foundation to help individuals and families living with PD and other movement disorders to achieve the highest possible quality of life now. In only 7 years of existence, the Center has established itself as a leader in PD care, research, and outreach on the local, national and international levels, and it has quickly grown to be one of the largest movement disorders center in NYC. The Center was awarded the prestigious designation of NPF Center of Excellence in 2009. For more information, visit http://parkinson.med.nyu.edu/ or call 646-501-9241.

About the JCC in Manhattan
Located on 76th Street and Amsterdam, the JCC is a vibrant non-profit community center on the Upper West Side. The cornerstone of progressive programming in Manhattan, the JCC serves over 55,000 people annually through 1,200 programs each season that educate, inspire, and transform participants' minds, bodies, and spirits.  The Marti Ann Meyerson Center for Health & Wellness is at the heart of the JCC's efforts to create a holistic environment that allows members to live their healthiest, most vibrant, and most complete life possible, serving people from every age and stage. For more information, visit www.jccmanhattan.org.

Media Contact:
Leilani Pearl
[email protected] 
305-537-9907

SOURCE National Parkinson Foundation