By Joe Siegel

On May 11, a Funny 4 Funds comedy show will be held at the Elks Lodge on Farnum Pike to raise money for a good cause – helping those living with Parkinson’s Disease. May is Parkinson’s Awareness Month.

The event is being organized by the Golomboski family in honor of Joseph Golomboski Sr., who was diagnosed with the disease in 2004 and passed away in 2019. He was 59.

“He never gave up,” said Joe Golomboski of his father. “He always had a smile on his face each day when he spent time with myself and my sister Alicia.”

“When my father was diagnosed with Parkinson’s, we didn’t really know where to turn,” Golomboski noted. “Our family was tight. We were always there when he needed us. Along the way, my sister and I wanted to find a way to honor our father.”

Alicia and Joe formed Team Golomboski in 2014 to honor their father’s fight against Parkinson’s. Team Golomboski has participated for 10 years in the American Parkinson Disease Association Rhode Island Chapter’s Optimism Walk.

Parkinson’s is a progressive, neurodegenerative disorder. It is a lifelong condition that affects the brain and worsens over time. Parkinson’s happens when cells in the brain that produce dopamine stop working or die.

According to the Parkinson’s Foundation, nearly one million people in the U.S. are living with Parkinson’s disease (PD). This number is expected to rise to 1.2 million by 2030. Parkinson’s is the second-most common neurodegenerative disease after Alzheimer’s disease.

• Nearly 90,000 people in the U.S. are diagnosed with PD each year.
• More than 10 million people worldwide are living with PD.
• The incidence of Parkinson’s disease increases with age, but an estimated four percent of people with PD are diagnosed before age 50.
• The combined direct and indirect cost of Parkinson’s, including treatment, social security payments and lost income, is estimated to be nearly $52 billion per year in the U.S. alone.

This is the third year the event is being held. Local comedians previously featured Tyler Hitner, Mike Murray, Charlie Hall, and Bill Simas. All funds raised at the Comedy Show goes towards the team goal for the annual Optimism Walk which benefits the American Parkinson Disease Association Rhode Island Chapter. $4,500 was raised at the 2023 show. Golomboski said sponsors are being sought for this year’s show.

Event sponsors include Rudy D’Agostino, owner of The Music Complex RI, The Battery Show, along with Anthony Golomboski of ReMax. “The main goal (of the fundraiser) is so when other families face this situation, that they know they’re not alone and there’s plenty of help out there and we’re here for them and they can live life to the fullest,” Golomboski added.

Doors open at 5pm. Show begins at 6 pm. The event includes a pasta dinner catered by the Elks.

Please visit https://www.facebook.com/TeamGolomboski or e-mail

te************@gm***.com











for more information about Funny 4 Funds.