Background:
Tracy White and Deano Parsons became friends back in 2017, while volunteering for a support group on Facebook. The group was aimed at supporting those with Parkinson’s Disease; a disease Tracy and Deano have both been diagnosed with. That particular group came to an end and so Tracy and Deano set about creating a replacement, which they named ‘Parkinson’s Road.’ This is where the magic began.
Over three years, that followed, Parkinson’s Road grew to a membership in the thousands, from across the globe and a team of volunteers who also come from far flung countries. A thriving support community was built and friendships established, worldwide. Having achieved this wonderful outcome, with team members that included Debbie Walker and Margaret S. Morton, Tracy and Deano stepped down from their roles at Parkinson’s Road in November 2020. It was at that time, that they conceived the idea for ‘Focused Friends’; a place for creativity, well-being and friendship but not restricted to any particular group of people.
Soon after Focused Friends had started to develop and grow, Tracy and Deano invited former colleagues from Parkinson’s Road to join them. Of those, Debbie Walker and Margaret S. Morton each accepted; joining Focused Friends while also still continuing on at Parkinson’s Road.
Tracy, Deano, Debbie and Margaret are a collective. Each have equal status in Focused Friends. Their aim is to offer an authentic expression of their life experiences; the highs and the lows. This will be through the posts and publications made here at this site, and on Focused Friends’ social media pages.
Purpose:
Focused Friends is all about living life in a creative way; a life where we try new things, where we develop aspects of life, where we dabble in art and creativity and also where we explore. Focused Friends is also about well-being; living life well, living healthily and exploring ways to enhance our well-being. This can be emotional well-being or it can be physical well-being. Focused Friends is also about valuing friendship; looking at relationships, encouraging activities and lifestyles that will contribute towards the maintenance and the betterment of the relationships we have with family and with friends.
The team at Focused Friends hope to get readers thinking reflectively. They hope to inspire readers to try new things and share the journey through life. It is hoped that such sharing will help people to not feel alone, when in adversity, that readers might feel encouraged to take a brave next step, that readers might say “Yes, I can do this.” and that readers might enrich life in new ways. Likewise, the team hope to learn from readers, by reading comments and replies in response to posts.
Get Involved:
Focused Friends encourages participation. In the main menu, there is a section in which you could post something for readers. You could write an article, you could make a video, you could share photos or your own artwork. If you would like to share something for the readers of Focused Friends, please contact the Focused Friends team, via the Contact Form option in the main menu, and they will come back to you and may agree to post something that you would like to publish here. This is your site; it has been created with you in mind and so the team are excited about the idea of welcoming you as a Guest Contributor.
Don’t forget, you will also find Focused Friends on Facebook, Instagram and at YouTube. Please take a look and please share anything you enjoy, whether on this site or at the various Focused Friends social media sites, with your own friends. Your support means a lot to the team.
If you have any ideas about what you would like the team to explore in the future or if you wish to offer feedback, please do send a message via the Contact Form in the main menu.
Have fun. 🙂
Focused Friends 