LANESPRINGFIELDANDREA
On February 19th, 2004, I was honored to be asked by United
States Representative Lane Evans and his staff to go to our
State Capitol and to introduce Lane to the press conference
that he was holding to announce his run for a 12th term. It
was an amazing opportunity to do something for the man whom
I have gotten to know and admire. We arrived in the capitol
building and found the room where we to hold the press conference.
Here are my comments from that day:
I am Joan Blessington Snyder.
I live in Chillicothe, IL and am a wife and mom to two teen-agers.
I am 52 yrs. old and have been dxed with Parkinson’s Disease
for almost 14 yrs. now.
I came here today to tell you why I think that Lane Evans can
handle the job that you elect him to do.
While I don’t agree with every vote that Congressman Evans
has cast…it is with certainty that I can vouch for his
integrity, his humanity and his abilities.
Parkinson’s Disease affects each one of us differently-it’s
a designer disease with no two of us progressing the same way
or reacting to medicine in the same way.
But what I know from meeting and talking to hundreds of people
with Parkinson’s , in nearly every case, our disease (while
none of us would choose this path) has profoundly affected our
lives for the better.
It has taught us patience, compassion and how to prioritize
our commitments…and I can tell you in no uncertain terms
that a person with Parkinson’s in a person who is an over-achiever.
I know Lane Evans and I know his disease and I can tell you
that he is ultimately committed to continue to do the best job
despite what some may see as a disability. I am proud to call
Lane Evans a friend and I think that he embodies the words of
Pope John the 23rd, when he said:
“Consult not your fears, but your hopes and your dreams.
Think not about your frustrations but about your unfulfilled
potential.
Concern yourself not with what you tried and failed in;
But with what it is still possible to do.”
by: Jodi Popeschil
of the Journal Star
Macomb-Andrea Lane Zigna kicked off her congressional campaign
Wednesday, saying in her hometown that 22-year incumbent Lane
Evans has failed to protect good jobs for others and lacks the
health to do his own.
Zinga said Evans’ battle with Parkinson’s Disease
is making it increasingly difficult for him to represent the
17th District.
“His health doesn’t permit it,” she said.
”He just can’t do the job and we are suffering mightily.
If we feel for him, then we do not
re-elect him.”
“That’s ridiculous,” said Steve Vetzner,
Evans’ press secretary. “It doesn’t prevent
him from doing his job. He may not run as fast as he used to,
but he knows which direction he’s going. He still has
the same drive and ability to do his job.”
Zinga, 54, of Milan is unopposed for the Republican nomination
in the race.
A graduate of Moline High School, Zinga worked at a Macomb
radio before becoming a member of the media in the Quad Cities
and eventually at CNN in Atlanta.
Zinga said Evans, D-Rock Island , has allowed good jobs to slip
away from the area. She said he promised 22 years ago to work
day and night to reopen the International Harvester Plant in
Canton.
“If he hasn’t been able to do anything that he set
out to accomplish , then 2 more years isn’t going to make
any difference,” she said. “The entire time that
Lane Evans has been our congressman, has been a litany of one
major high-wage employer after another leaving the 17th District.”
Vetzner said Evans has helped retain jobs in the district .
As an example, he said Evans played a role in convincing Carhart,
a clothing company, not to leave Galesburg.
NAFTA, which Evans opposed, is partly to blame for a loss of
manufacturing jobs nationwide to countries such as Mexico, Vetzner
said. “He has opposed trade laws that have taken jobs
away. We need to change those laws and keep jobs here.”
Zinga also made stops Wednesday in Quincy, Springfield and Decatur.
The following is my letter to Andrea Lane Zigna:
Dear Andres Lane Zigna;
I would like you to know that I have no objection to you entering
a race against Lane Evans….however, I DO take tremendous
offence at your statements about the Congressman’s health
causing him not to be able to do his job in Washington, DC for
the 17th District.
I know Lane Evans and I his Parkinson’s disease as only
another person with Parkinson’s can know. I might not
agree with every single vote he has cast but I know him to be
a man of integrity, vision, hope and I am completely confident
in his ability to do his job.
I have had Parkinson’s disease for over 14 years; I,
too, was diagnosed at an early age (39). They call PD the “snowflake
disease” with good reason and that reason is that no two
people with Parkinson’s are exactly the same-they do not
have the same symptoms, reaction to medicine, the same rate
of progression nor the same severity of symptoms. While I am
completely disabled, in part because of a botched pallidotomy,
and I am unable to work because of this disease, DO NOT FOR
A MOMENT suspect that just because Lane has trouble speaking
or running like he used to, that his brain or thought patterns
are in any way compromised. His brain is doing just fine, thank
you, although his body is not.
Now, I will tell you that PD affects the voice, short-term
memory, and cognitive skills but when you have surrounded yourself
with a staff of the highest quality and rare commitment to their
boss, these things can be readily overcome. I don’t have
the staff that Lane has but I can tell you in no uncertain terms
that I can do the mental work of 4 healthy people-in my own
time and in my own way. I dare you to find one person with Parkinson’s
who is not an over-achiever.
Now, Ms. Zinga, if you plan to wage a fair campaign, then more
power to you BUT if you continue to play the “ability”
card, be prepared for the vigorous opposition from the many
people with disabilities who think that Lane Evans is doing
a very creditable job. Sincerely, Joan Blessington Snyder
This is Andrea Lane Zigna’s reply to me:
Dear Joan,
I appreciate very much hearing from you, especially such a
thoughtful letter.
This is in NO WAY about the disabled or the ability of people
with Parkinson’s to function, accomplish and achieve.
It is in NO WAY about Mr. Evans’ mental abilities. While
as you said, Parkinson’s is a “snowflake disease”
and while my research says that dementia can occur in some people,
none of us has any way of knowing what is or what is not happening
in the congressman’s brain. So the assumption must be
made, then, that his mental ability is, as you say, just fine.
You raise a couple of points I’d like to address. You
say that while his brain is fine, “his body is not.”
And that is the gist of the question as I see it: whether he
has the stamina to satisfy the job description of a Congressman.
Most disabled people that I know are quite proud, as are you,
of what they CAN do; but they are also, to a person in my experience,
aware of what they cannot .There are jobs that Mr. Evans can
do. I just wonder if being in Congress is still one of them;
that is, is he being fair to the people of the 17th District
if in fact what the people in the 17th District needs is someone
who can give 100% to the job? Having your mental abilities isn’t
giving 100%.
You mention his staff. Joan, we do not elect his staff, although
taxpayers do pay for that too. Is it fair for the voters to
have a Congressman who has much more of his load carried by
his staff than is the norm? Why not just have the staff and
not be bothered with the congressman.
And then, you address another point. You say that you get things
done “in your own time and in your own way.” Of
course and more power to you! But again I wonder: time is in
precious short supply for any of us these days; and from what
I observe of congress, those with speed, succeed. Decisions
and developments happen on the turn of a dime sometimes. The
faster you can move, then the more people you can talk to, the
more visiting you can do out in the district, the more telephoning,
attending meetings, catching flights, driving, persuading, cajoling,
buttonholing and advocating. In other words, the more you can
do for the folks back home. It is that simple.
If fate had turned the tables and I were the one with Parkinson’s.
I assure you that I would not have been able to continue ion
my job as a TV anchor. I wonder if it is fair for Mr. Evans
to continue to expect the voters to pay him and elect him for
that one. And I firmly believe it’s fair to raise these
questions.
All the best to you. You sound like a good woman to know. Maybe
we’’ll have that opportunity one day. Regards, Andrea
Zigna
On October 8th of 2004, I was able to respond to Andrea Lane
Zigna’s letter at the Lane Evans Annual Unity Dinner held
at the Crowne Plaza hotel in Springfield. I had been given 10
tickets for this $100-a-plate dinner and so with my gang of
friends, we left for the state capital. After arriving and greeting
lots of old friends and meeting several new friends
(and drinking not enough wine), Lane’s campaign manager
came and found me, saying that he had bad news and good news
to tell me. He said that the bad news was that Lane would be
unable to attend his own function because of some pressing legislation
that needed to be voted on that evening. I was disappointed
as I asked him what the good news was. He said that the good
news was that I was to be one of four people to speak to the
crowd of 1,000+ people gathered in the room on Lane’s
behalf. Not only that but my position was that of clean-up batter-I
was to be the final speaker of the evening! It was up to me
to give the crowd something to take home from this evening.
As I looked around at the elegantly dressed and very important
people who were seated at the dais, I wondered what I could
possibly say that these people would want to hear. I had no
time to gather my thoughts and writing notes on napkins were
unreadable, as the first of the invited speakers was introduced.
It was Senator Barack Obama, a friend of mine and the rising
star of the Democratic party.
His message was one of hope, victory and concern for all people.
He was fresh from his address to the DNC and his comments drew
loud and long applause.
Then the other invited speakers took their turns in speaking
while the rest of the room was served dinner. These speakers
included judges, Democratic state senators, state congressmen
and read like a who’s who of the Democratic party in Illinois.
How could I follow an act like that and ontop of everything
else, being the last speaker, the group would have finished
their dessert and coffee and be ready to either nap in their
chairs or head for home.
As the fist three of the four speakers to talk in Lane’s
absence, I heard the now-familiar “rah-rah” for
the Democratic party
and the usual Republican-bashing that goes on at these affairs.
I wanted my remarks to be different. They pushed my wheelchair
up to the stage and helped me up onto the platform. I began
to speak about the letter that I had received from Andrea Lane
Zigna and how I thought it was a sin for her to make this race
about Lane’s health. I said that I had one word for that
nonsense and that word was;
“bullshit.” For a moment, I thought that I had crossed
the line, no one uttered a sound for all of about 15 seconds,
and then the crowd was on their feet, clapping and cheering
me in the first of 4 standing ovations. I recalled the part
of the letter in which Ms. Zigna had stated “those with
speed-succeed” and I asked the rhetorical question, “When
was the last time you ever heard of anything accomplished in
a hurry in Washington, DC?”
I said that no one can pay a staff for their loyalty and commitment
and that from where I stood, Lane’s staff was a jewel,
befitting his intensity and great stands on issues and I wondered
why ALZ would have lost her job as a TV anchor person if she
had Parkinson’s. Was it because the job was so transparent
and vain as to disallow any one who wasn’t perfect to
succeed. I said that Lane Evans had my vote of confidence and
that to find a more sincere or devoted man or woman for this
job would be an impossible task.
As they helped me back to my wheelchair, amid thunderous applause,
Lane’s manager said that Lane was on the phone and had
listened to my speech and now wanted to talk to me.
When I picked up the phone, Lane said softly, “you hit
a home run.” I could not think of any higher praise.
