Gary Barg: You
started HollyRod Foundation after
Holly's dad, the great Matthew Robinson,
was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.
He was, of course, noted for being the
first Gordon on Sesame Street and also
writer and producer of The Cosby Show.
Why did you start the foundation?
What are its goals?
Holly Robinson Peete:
The Foundation was started in 1997 when
my husband, Rodney, basically told me to
stop feeling sorry for myself that my
dad had Parkinson's disease, but to feel
blessed that we had the resources to
take care of him when so many people did
not. We provide physical,
occupational and speech therapies and
other services to families affected by
Parkinson's disease that otherwise would
not be able to access those services.
So we are thrilled to be able to
continue his legacy by helping other
people with Parkinson's disease;
especially since my dad has been gone,
it has been eight years now. It
has been really gratifying in the face
of something kind of ugly and tragic,
mainly my father's diagnosis. Then
about ten years ago, our oldest son was
diagnosed with autism. What we
found, among other things, is that
autism is pretty much unaffordable, much
like Parkinson's. It is not
covered by insurances in most cases and
we wanted to help families affected by
autism as well. So we have a dual
mission. We started with
Parkinson's, but in affect, it is all
about compassionate care.
Gary Barg: You
know your dad was in his mid-40s when he
was diagnosed, but he continued to work
actively for almost 20 years. Do
you think that remaining active was
healthy and helpful?
Holly Robinson Peete:
Oh, I think it definitely kept him
going. I have nobody else to thank
but Bill Cosby who really could
have let my father go on the grounds
that it was just a physical grind for
him to suffer from Parkinson's and keep
up the schedule of a comedy writer.
Mr. Cosby kept my father employed and I
think that just kept the spark, the fire
burning in him. Now, every time I see
Mr. Cosby, I always tell him, “Thank you
so much; you just gave him such a great
ending and he felt such a sense of
self-worth.” Mr. Cosby always says,
“Listen, I was not doing him any favors.
He was the funniest writer we had.”
That always makes me smile.
Gary Barg: What does
the Compassionate Care Program do for
people living with Parkinson's and their
caregivers?
