Mr. Speaker, I am proud to be a voice in Parliament today for the over 100,000 Canadians living with Parkinson's disease and the 10,000 or so Canadians that will diagnosed this year.
I recall Muhammad Ali lighting the Olympic flame in Atlanta after his Parkinson's diagnosis and watching Michael J. Fox on TV while he fought his symptoms. Parkinson's hits close to home for me as well, because my dad, Joe, was diagnosed about eight years ago. Since then, my dad has been an active volunteer and organizer with Parkinson Canada and its annual SuperWalk.
When it became apparent that the SuperWalk would be changing this year due to COVID-19, my dad, Joe, got walking. He set an incredible goal of walking one million steps this summer. Amazingly, he completed those steps in his home town of Peterborough with his small but mighty Peterborough Parkinson community, and they raised a lot of money too.
Better treatments and a cure for Parkinson's are out there. I want to thank Parkinson Canada, Dr. Anthony Lang, the Michael J. Fox Foundation, and David Spinney for doing so much for people with Parkinson's. I encourage everyone to support their local SuperWalk next year.
I am proud of my dad.