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Our Mission

Provide the best information about opportunities, treatment, research, and care for people with PD, their caregivers, and their families.

What PAWM Provides

PAWM is located in beautiful Grand Rapids, Michigan, and serves the Greater Grand Rapids area as well as the Lakeshore areas, such as the communities of Holland and Muskegon. We are committed to helping Parkinson’s Disease (PD) patients and their families/caregivers understand PD and learn about activities and support groups that may help with the management of PD.

PAWM is a source of PD-related information. We help promote many different PD-related activities, including online information, programs on physical and speech therapy, relaxation training, and other measures which are important in learning to live with PD. You may choose to learn about home health care or to hear presentations by neurologists and other health professionals with PD experience and training.

PAWM is constantly searching for and providing current information pertaining to research, treatment, and topics that would be of interest to people with PD, their families, and their support persons.

PAWM provides the following services for people with PD, their families, and support persons:

  • Timely and accurate information via this website, Facebook, emails, and printed material;
  • A dynamic Search Engine providing a wide range of PD Information, including books, local support groups, clinical trials, and information on specialized services, such as a Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) Support Group;
  • A connection to exercise and other special classes for people with PD;
  • Notification of opportunities to participate in PD-related studies;
  • Lectures and events featuring PD experts;

Documents & Links

Annual Report CY2016
Annual Report CY2017
Annual Report CY2018
Annual Report CY2019
Annual Report CY2020

GuideStar – IRS 990’s

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Kim Cousineau, MPA
Executive Assistant at Van Andel Institute

Kim is an experienced Executive Assistant working at the Van Andel Institute where she provides administrative support within the Parkinson’s Disease Center.  She manages the Grand Challenges in Parkinson Disease symposium, Rallying to the Challenge meeting, and in collaboration with Cure Parkinson’s, coordinates the annual International Linked Clinical Trials meeting.

Before joining the Van Andel Institute, Kim was a Legal Assistant at a local intellectual property law firm.  She received her Bachelors in Science (Legal Studies) in 1996 and her Master’s degree (Public Administration – Nonprofit Management) in 2014, both from Grand Valley State University.

In 2016, Kim joined the PAWM Board to continue to be a positive influence in the West Michigan community.

Joy Gianakura Allen, EDD
Associate Dean, Seidman Student Academic Services, GVSU

Joy is the Associate Dean of the Seidman Student Academic Services office in the Seidman College of Business at Grand Valley State University (GVSU) in Grand Rapids, MI.  Joy has a BS in Education from CMU, an MS in Higher Education from GVSU, and a doctorate in Higher Education Leadership from CMU. She has spent over 30 years in higher education and is dedicated to teaching and learning.

Joy’s passion is in educating those who have been impacted by Parkinson’s disease as a patient, caregiver, or family member. Joy believes that educating the general population in terms of awareness about the disease is a critical piece in creating supportive communities for all who are challenged by a PD diagnosis. Parkinson’s has personally impacted Joy’s family when her sister was diagnosed in 2017 at the young age of 56.

In 2019, Joy joined the PAWM Board to continue to be a positive influence in the West Michigan community.

Donald J. Michaud
IT Director, Cherry Health

Donald has been a PAWM Board member since 2016.  Since then, he has served as our Treasurer and IT Manager making sure that all of our technology initiatives are meeting the needs of our Board and community members.

In Donald’s professional career, Donald has been involved in IT in various professional roles since 1989.  In 2001, Donald started managing his own consulting firm and overseeing various companies’ IT infrastructure in a virtual CIO capacity making technological and process improvements.  More recently in April 2021, Donald started with Cherry Health as their IT Director.

Cherry Health is a non-profit, Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) with a focus on providing high-quality health services to all, regardless of their ability to pay. Services provided by Cherry Health include primary care, women’s health, pediatrics, dental, vision, behavioral health, five school-based health centers providing vision, dental, behavioral health services, and employee assistance for employers. Cherry Health provides services to all individuals, and a sliding fee payment scale based on income and family size is available to those with or without insurance. Medicaid and Healthy Michigan are accepted, as are many other insurance plans.

Cherry Health is the largest FQHC in the State of Michigan serving six (6) counties. Cherry Health has over 800 employees and a network of over 70 physicians and advanced practice providers specializing in primary care/family medicine, pediatrics, obstetrics/gynecology, optometry, oral health, behavioral health, and psychiatry. Additionally, Cherry Health runs a school-linked program active in 70 public schools offering both vision and dental care.

Shaun Hindley, MS
Regulatory Affairs Profession in US Pharmaceutical Industry

Shaun has been a PAWM Board member since 2016.  He has served as both a Board member as well as our Secretary making sure all of our Board meetings are properly organized and documented.

As a PD patient that was born in one country, raised in another, and currently working in a third, Shaun has found his international connections to come in quite helpful at times. These connections aid him in understanding how patients are treated in different countries and the movement of ideas to other countries.

As a person educated in chemistry (BS) and neuroscience (MS), Shaun is able to teach others what is happening inside the brain as PD patients fight this disease. Understanding why they take so many medicines and how the medicines work together can be helpful for PwP since we are now living much longer lives than ever before.

As a person currently working in the US pharmaceutical industry, Shaun has insight into how drugs are brought to market: both innovative medicines and generic medicines.

Mark D. Asma
Financial Advisor, Edward Jones

Mark’s career as an Edward Jones financial advisor developed out of his passion to make a positive, meaningful impact on people’s lives. Helping his clients navigate the complex world of investment strategies and understand how the decisions made together will help them achieve their short-term and long-term financial goals is something he is truly humbled to participate in.

His Edward Jones practice is centered around serving his client’s individual needs, making sure that they feel heard and understood, and partnering with his individual clients through the various seasons of his client’s life to keep them on track with their individual financial goals.

Mark does similar work for PAWM.  Mark joined the PAWM Board in January 2019.  He helps make sure that financial and business decisions are in the best interest of the patients, organization, and the community we serve.

Gary Conn
Retired, Former Pharmaceutical Sales Manager
Caryl E. Sortwell, PhD
Professor and Associate Chair, Michigan State University

Caryl E. Sortwell, PhD, is a professor and associate chair in the Department of Translational Science at Michigan State University (MSU) College of Human Medicine campus in Grand Rapids. She has over 20 years of experience conducting research on Parkinson’s disease. In her research, Dr. Sortwell focuses on optimizing pre-clinical models with alpha-synuclein features and on testing disease-modifying strategies.

Dr. Sortwell has served on the PAWM Board of Directors since 2015.

Robert “Ross” Coleman, MD
Neurologist, Spectrum Health

Dr. Coleman, MD, is a neurologist specializing in movement disorders at Spectrum Health in Grand Rapids.  Dr. Coleman earned his medical degree from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, Tennessee, and completed his neurology residency at the University of Michigan Health System in Ann Arbor. He completed his movement disorders fellowship at the University of California, San Francisco, and the San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Dr. Coleman’s clinical interests include Parkinson’s Disease (PD), essential tremor and other tremor disorders, dystonia, deep brain stimulation, levodopa intestinal infusion therapy, botulinum toxin injection, ataxia, Huntington’s disease, progressive supranuclear palsy, multiple system atrophy, corticobasal degeneration, and other movement disorders.

Dr. Barbara Pickut, MD
Associate Professor of Neurology, Michigan State University College of Human Medicine and College of Osteopathic Medicine

Dr. Barbara Pickut is an Associate Professor of Neurology at the Michigan State University College of Human Medicine and College of Osteopathic Medicine. She is a graduate of the University of Michigan School of Public Health and received her medical degree from the University of Antwerp, Belgium where she completed residencies in Neurology and in Neuro-rehabilitation. She was a founding member of the Belgian Movement Disorders Society.

Dr. Pickut has participated in clinical research studies for neurological diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. She currently practices in East Lansing and specializes in Parkinson’s, Movement Disorders, Memory Disorders, and clinical research.

Brian Toronyi
Public Relations, Parkinson's Association of West Michigan

Brian has been with PAWM since 2012.  Over the years, he has been involved with many West Michigan organizations as a volunteer.  He has even served as President of PAWM for a number of years.

Diagnosed with YOPD at the age of 42 (2011), he knows all too well how the effects Parkinson’s disease can impact a person, caregiver, family, and community.   He had Deep Brain Stimulation surgery in 2019.

While advocating for PwP and a cure, Brian has participated in many events and conferences such as Parkinson’s Unity Walk in NYC, World Parkinson’s Congress in Kyoto Japan, as well as Partners in Parkinson’s and RALLY at Van Andel Institute.  It is common to see him on stage, on TV, or hear him on the radio pushing for a cure and inspiring others.