The Ribbon of Road Ahead

Around a table at a bar, sitting with strangers, I completely passed myself off as a pediatrician.  Luckily the music was too loud for anyone to hear what I told them about my fictitious practice, and no one asked for my card.  PHEW

Why I did that I don’t know.  It seemed fun at the time.  

Here is some TRUE information about me.  Ask anyone.  If they know me they will say “I never knew she did THAT.”  If they don’t know me they will say  “She did THAT?”

                                                                                                                                            Carol Clupny     Biography

Carol Clupny grew up riding horses, climbing trees and tubing down the creek.  The fish would not stay off her line nor the tales from her lips as she grew up into a fun-loving, storytelling adult.  It came as a blow when at age fifty she was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease.  Retiring from her career as a speech-language pathologist she became fed-up with sitting in a recliner and decided to travel. Her first steps, walking out her door to the mailbox, lead to treading over 1000 miles of pilgrimage trails on the Camino de Santiago in France and Spain.  A dusty bike discovered in the garage resulted in three rides on the Des Moines Registers Annual Great Bike Ride Across Iowa.  She lived through these adventures to write a book The Ribbon of Road Ahead: One Woman’s Remarkable Journey with Parkinson’s Disease.

Carol blogs about her everyday life as a middle-aged woman in the mid-stages of Parkinson’s disease.  Her honest, humorous and casual narrative style brings the reader to a rocking chair moment. Sitting beside Carol on her front porch, listening to the cries of peacocks calling in the distance and horses chomping grass in the pasture just across the fence the reader understands why Carol is always writing about The Ribbon of Road Ahead.  www.ultreiablog.org

Carol received a Masters of Science in Speech Pathology from Eastern Washington University and further certification in School Leadership and  Administration from Lewis and Clark College. She provided speech pathology services and served as program director for 31 years in the wide geographic area of eastern Oregon. Active in the Oregon Speech-Language and Hearing Association she received honors of the association and the presidential award for her work on recruitment and retention of speech and hearing professionals. Carol presented numerous papers and projects at local,  state and regional professional conferences.  She was appointed by Governor  Ted Kulongoski to two terms of the Oregon Board of Examiners of Speech Pathology and Audiology.    She was selected by the Parkinson’s Foundation to provide leadership in planning a region-wide forum of women with Parkinson’s.  Recently the Michael J Fox Foundation chose Carol to attend the National Parkinson’s Disease Policy Forum in Washington DC.  Carol is a support group facilitator for Parkinson’s Resources of Oregon and an Ambassador for the Davis Phinney Foundation for Parkinson’s.

Carol and her husband Charlie have raised two boys, two horses and numerous calves (but no chickens)  over the years on their small acreage in Hermiston, Oregon.

Press Release:

MEDIA CONTACT: Carol Clupny

(541)720-4256

ultreiabooks@gmail.com       

                                                                                                   Hermiston Parkinson’s Patient Carol Clupny Releases First Title

                                                                              The Ribbon of Road Ahead:  One Woman’s Remarkable Journey with Parkinson’s Disease

Hermiston, OR   March 15, 2019.   Carol Clupny released her memoir The Ribbon of Road Ahead:  One Woman’s Remarkable Journey with Parkinson’s Disease.  Suffering for years from unexplained symptoms, Carol was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease in 2008. She retired as a speech-language pathologist after thirty-one years with the InterMountain Education Service District and settled into acceptance. Learning to live with a progressive neurological disease challenged her once active lifestyle. Shocked when getting outside to the mailbox became a struggle, she began walking; trekking over a thousand miles on pilgrimage trails in France and Spain. Reading that bicycling helped mitigate the symptoms of Parkinson’s Disease she started riding; cycling across Iowa four times with the Pedaling for Parkinson’s Team. In 2016, Carol had a deep brain stimulation procedure which further slowed the advancement of symptoms.

Claude Tranchant, author of From Boots to Bliss says, “This book is a story of resilience, strength, and belief in oneself.”

Holly Chaimov, executive director of Parkinson’s Resources of Oregon describes the book as “entertaining and enlightening.”

Carol grew up in Walla Walla, WA., attended DeSales High School and Walla Walla Community College. She received a Master of Science in Communication Disorders from Eastern Washington University and studied school leadership at Lewis and Clark College.

She is active in the Parkinson’s community as a fundraiser, a support group leader for Parkinson’s Resources of Oregon and an ambassador for the Davis Phinney Foundation.

The 295-page soft cover book includes photographs of the author’s adventures.  The book is priced at $17 with an electronic version for $6.99. Autographed copies are available from the author by ordering from http://www.ultrieablog.org. The book is also available at Hermiston Drug and Gift, Broadway Books in Portland, Amazon and Kindle.

The author is currently scheduling appearances for fall and winter of 2019-20.

Please contact the author at (541) 720-4256 or ultreiabooks@gmail.com for more information

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