TONAWANDA, N.Y. (WIVB) — Just about every inch of Parkinson’s Boxing in the town of Tonawanda was being used on a recent Tuesday morning.
And that’s saying something, considering this building, to which they just expanded this year, is five times the size of their old place.
“A few years ago it was just me, as you know,” said Parkinson’s Boxing founder Dean Eoannou. “And now there’s 35 trainers and staff among the north and southtowns.”
Eoannou’s Parkinson’s Boxing is a gym that helps people with neurological conditions stave off some of their disease’s worst symptoms — and in some cases, show real improvement. News 4 first introduced the booming business in 2022, when they were expanding to the town of Hamburg.
That was what brought former Buffalo Congressman Jack Quinn to Dean about nine years ago, three years after he was diagnosed. Quinn’s older brother Jeff, who also has Parkinson’s, was seeing better mobility in just a short time working with Dean.
The success of Parkinson’s Boxing is a double edged sword. Its need to expand at such a rapid pace also paints a clearer picture of the grip Parkinson’s and other neurological diseases have on WNY.
“The good news is we have place for people with Parkinson’s to go,” Quinn said. “The bad news is we have a place for people with Parkinson’s go to. And it’s full. Packed. Absolutely packed.”
The constant flow of client traffic is part of what makes the place is so effective, Quinn says. There’s camaraderie in collective challenge.
“It makes you feel like you’re doing something about it,” Quinn said. “You’re not going to sit in the corner and say listen I’ve got Parkinson’s, I’m never going to be able to do the things I used to do. Well, with some of the people here helping you, you can do the things you did before.”
“We’re not giving anyone any false hope here, cause that’s just as bad,” Eoannou said. “This right here will buy you time like you can’t believe.”
More time is something everyone wants, especially people whose lives are impacted on a daily basis by diseases that get progressively worse. Dean knows this fact to his core.
And that’s why, even at his age, he decided to take a chance.
“I’m 70 years old, on paper this move makes no sense,” Eoannou said. “But I don’t want this place to die with me. So I know right now that it’ll keep going.”
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Dave Greber is an award-winning anchor and reporter who has been part of the News 4 team since 2015. See more of his work here.
