Parkinson's Disease Foundation

THE PARKINSON'S DISEASE Foundation (PDF), founded in New York City in 1957, is a tax—exempt, charitable organization that supports research, education, and advocacy related to Parkinson's disease, a chronic and progressive disease that afflicts approximately 1 million Americans. The PDF annual budget is over $9 million, and the organization has corresponding relationships with over 100,000 members of the Parkinson's community.

PDF was founded by William Black, founder of the Chock Full o' Nuts Corporation; Black's immediate motivation was the plight of a business associate who was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease and found that there was little education or assistance available to help patients cope with the disease. PDF was originally located at the Columbia University Medical Center in New York City, where Black made major gifts ...