2012 marks the beginning of the 38^th year that HAPS has been offering services and providing resources to the local Parkinson’s community. As we leave behind a very successful 2011, we are especially excited to keep the momentum going as we prepare to take part in awareness-raising activities, community collaborations and gear up to offer more educational programs, support groups and exercise classes in 2012.

HAPS kicks off the new year by participating as an official charity of the Chevron Houston Marathon for the 16th consecutive year on Sunday, January 15^th. This event offers a prime opportunity to raise the visibility of Parkinson’s disease and the services and programs provided by HAPS to the thousands of Houstonians living with PD. But this is just the beginning. Here are just some of the other things to watch for in the coming year...

• HAPS Annual Educational Symposium—Moving Forward: Living with Parkinson’s, Saturday, April 28^th.
• 2^nd Annual Playing for Parkinson’s, Sunday, March 25^th—stay tuned for more details.
• New support groups—look for more information about specific groups for caregivers and patients in upcoming newsletters.
• More exercise classes—including a new beginners Tango class with an exciting collaboration. 
• Summer Lecture Series—HAPS is happy to welcome back the popular educational series held in June, July and August.
• DBS Discussion Group—quarterly sessions discussing all things related to Deep Brain Stimulation for those who are contemplating or who have completed DBS.

There will be more to come on these and other 2012 programs and events. We  are looking forward to another year of serving the Parkinson’s community.