Ever since Mark Lasseigne was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in the winter of 2010, he’s kicked his Uno game up a notch. Weekly, he meets up with son Philip, daughter Aimee, daughter’s boyfriend Chris Hause and granddaughter Mallory for a family game of Shoots and Ladders, Candy Land or the family favorite ultra-competitive card game.
“If anything, the diagnosis has led him to do more,” says Philip, who captured the family mid-game and shared the picture for our #unselfie campaign. “He’s really involved with Mallory, he does more gardening, more work in the garage. He’s really trying to get more involved in my sister and our lives.”
When he’s not playing games and tinkering in the garage, Mark works as a civil engineer. But for Mallory, he’s just grandpa, and while she understands that he sometimes needs his rest, he’s almost always up for a game. She is, too – as long as she’s winning.
Philip says he’s giving to the Foundation this year so his family can keep up the game night tradition for years to come.
He also credits the Foundation for offering a useful source of information when his father was first diagnosed. Besides sharing his #unselfie, Philip voiced his thoughts on Michael J. Fox, the Foundation and the idea of courage in his personal blog:
Throughout his life, Michael J. Fox has been role model to many. His performance in the “Back to the Future” franchise and presence on the hit shows “Family Ties” and “Spin City” drew him a large and varied fan base. But as often is the case, you don’t truly learn about someone until they face adversity.
And adversity found Fox. Just as his career was beginning to take off, he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease. While he waited years to make he prognosis public, it was worth the wait. He has since founded the Michael J. Fox Foundation, which has raised more than $300 million toward finding a cure for the disease.
While the Parkinson’s symptoms have become more noticeable on Fox, he’s refused to let his diagnosis slow him down. In addition to being the face of his foundation, he has decided to undertake a new project, which will help inspire millions.