Anne G. Barretta

Retired #Communications Professor. Past Prez at @UDAlumni #BlueHensForever #Lowcountry #WilmingtonDE born and raised #EquineAdvocate 🐴

[Anne G. Barretta @angiabar]

WAIT! Does this mean #BarrettaBowl is trending?!

[The Husky @Mr_Husky1]

Michael J. Fox was 29 in 1991 when a small tremor in his pinky finger became a life sentence. He was filming "Doc Hollywood" (1991), newly married to Tracy Pollan, and already one of television and film’s most loved faces.

The doctor’s words did not sound possible. Parkinson’s was supposed to belong to old age, not a young star with children, scripts, applause, and a body built for speed.

Fox had come from the wild rush of "Family Ties" (1982) and "Back to the Future" (1985), where his nervous energy looked like pure comic timing. Then his own body began moving without permission. At first, he hid it. He held props in his left hand. He adjusted his posture. He worked harder than the camera could see.

That hiding cost him. Fox later admitted he drank heavily after the diagnosis, not because he was careless, but because fear had found a private door. He said the drinking was “screwing up my relationships and screwing up my marriage and screwing up my work.” That sentence was not polished. It was a man naming the wreckage before it swallowed him.

Tracy Pollan became the person who would not let the lie become their marriage. They had married in 1988, after meeting through "Family Ties," and she stayed close when the diagnosis turned their future into something neither of them had chosen. Fox later said, “The tools that worked for quitting drinking work even better for Parkinson’s, which are acceptance and surrender. Not like, ‘I give up, I quit,’ but you just say, ‘OK, I cede you the big points.’”

That was not weakness. That was survival.

In 1996, Fox returned to series television with "Spin City" (1996), playing Deputy Mayor Mike Flaherty with the same sharp rhythm fans loved. But by the third season, Parkinson’s was harder to disguise. The man who had once made movement look effortless was now calculating every gesture. In 1998, he told the public. After one more season, he stepped back from full-time acting in 2000.

Then he did something bigger than hiding. He launched The Michael J. Fox Foundation in 2000, turning his name into a research engine. Years later, the foundation would say its single urgent goal was to eliminate Parkinson’s in his lifetime, with more than $2.5 billion funded in research programs. Fox also gave patients a voice with a simple truth: “Parkinson’s patients are the experts on what we have. We have a responsibility as patients to share our experience.”

The public saw the courage, but the body kept taking. In "Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie" (2023), he let people see the falls, the broken bones, the jokes that came after impact, and the exhaustion behind his smile. He had broken arms, an elbow, his hand, and even his face. Still, he refused to make the film a pity story. “I could never be still, until I couldn’t be still,” he said. Then came the meaning he carried underneath it: “Still here. Still committed.”

That is why his story hurts and lifts at the same time. He did not become brave because Parkinson’s made life simple. He became brave because fear, alcohol, secrecy, pain, and public shame all had their turn, and none of them got the final word.

On January 4, 2025, Fox received the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The honor was not just for a famous actor. It was for the man who took a private diagnosis and built a public bridge for millions. Fox said, “Receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom is humbling, an honor I could never have anticipated. I’m grateful for this recognition, which I share with the patients, families and researchers who have brought us closer than ever to ending Parkinson’s disease once and for all.”

Michael J. Fox did not outrun Parkinson’s.

He taught millions how to keep moving.

[Kentucky Derby @KentuckyDerby]

Kentucky Derby winner Golden Tempo wins the 158th Belmont Stakes with Jose Ortiz aboard for Cherie DeVaux, claiming the final leg of the Triple Crown.

They did it.

[Anne G. Barretta @angiabar]

.@TrooperBob_SC So cool meeting you today! OPA!

[Trooper Bob @TrooperBob_SC]

OPA! 🇬🇷🏛️🥙🎼
The 55th Annual Charleston Greek
Festival is the oldest festival in the Charleston area, dating back to 1970. It’s the 3rd largest festival in the Lowcountry with 35,000+ attendees over one weekend each
year.
Hours:
Friday, May 8, 2026 - 4pm-9pm
Saturday, May 9, - 11am-9pm
Sunday, May 10, - 12pm-5pm (Mother’s Day)
Greek Orthodox Church of the Holy Trinity, 30 Race St, Charleston, SC 29403
🥙🥙🥙🍷🎼🎤🇬🇷🙂
@ABCNews4
They have Gyro’s, lamb burgers, desserts, live music, dancing and even met lots of fans of Good Morning Charleston!
For more information, click on link 👇🏼
https://t.co/qS2Jtlx4Lw

[Anne G. Barretta @angiabar]

Thank you for putting the horse first above profitability 🐴#GoldenTempo

[Cherie DeVaux @reredevaux]

Preakness announcement

[CBS Sunday Morning 🌞 @CBSSunday]

Nineteen-year-old Annalucia Meyer has cerebral palsy — and her mother, Emilia, says that her daughter’s bond with her therapeutic horse has helped her walk, hold herself upright and gain confidence since she began riding at age 4.

Watch more of Lesley Stahl’s report on the powerful bonds horses and humans can create tomorrow.

[Rep. Nancy Mace @RepNancyMace]

For too long, Washington’s answer to wild horses has been a helicopter and a holding pen, on the taxpayer’s dime.

We filed an amendment to the Farm Bill including key provisions of our Veterans for Mustangs Act, directing the Secretary of Agriculture to implement humane, reversible, non-surgical fertility controls to manage wild horse and burro populations on Forest Service lands, and prioritizing military veterans to carry out the work.

Our amendment brings common sense and accountability back. It protects our mustangs, stops the waste, and puts veterans to work with real purpose out on the range.

This is a win for taxpayers, a win for animals, and a win for those who’ve served.

[Sports Illustrated @SInow]

“I can swallow [the loss] because we lost to a really good human being and a good team that represents women’s basketball well.”

Nothing but respect between Dawn Staley and Cori Close ❤️

[Anne G. Barretta @angiabar]

Yup. Integrity. Learned this from @dawnstaley didn’t you? @GamecockWBB @GamecocksOnline

[UConn Women’s Basketball @UConnWBB]

Statement from Head Coach Geno Auriemma

[Martina Navratilova @Martina]

What the heck is wrong with Auriemma???
Wow….
Well done South Carolina and Dawn Staley!!!

[Anne G. Barretta @angiabar]

.@dawnstaley Integrity! Congratulations on your #FinalFour win 🏀 @GamecocksOnline

[Anwar Knight @AnwarKnight]

Last night, the world was reminded just how extraordinary Michael J. Fox truly is. Take a quick moment to listen to what he said at the Actor Awards last night, as he reflects what his career in acting has provided him. For decades, he has faced Parkinson’s disease with #courage, humour, and #grace transforming personal adversity into global impact through the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research @MichaelJFoxOrg We all wish him continued strength.

[American Wild Horse Conservation @FreeWildHorses]

Historically, the very traits that made people fear the Fire Horse—its independence, its heat, its refusal to be tethered or contained—are the exact reasons we fight to protect wild horses on our public lands.

2026 isn't a year to fear the fire; it's a year to protect it. 🔥

[Anne G. Barretta @angiabar]

Who remembers the #BarrettaBowl ? Trending 7 years ago right here! 🏈

[Anne G. Barretta @angiabar]

WAIT! Does this mean #BarrettaBowl is trending?!

[Anne G. Barretta @angiabar]

.@glennschuck Looking for you in the media scrum today

[Budweiser @budweiserusa]

For 150 Years, This Bud’s For You. Watch our Super Bowl LX commercial now.

[Anne G. Barretta @angiabar]

Don’t miss this! Stay safe, Glenn ❄️

[glenn schuck @glennschuck]

West side Highway Manhattan @1010WINS

[Return to Freedom @ReturnToFreedom]

🌤️ On this Martin Luther King Jr. Day, please take time to stand up for something you care about.

[American Wild Horse Conservation @FreeWildHorses]

Yesterday, Congress passed the Interior Appropriations bill, preserving protections against slaughter and providing up to $11 million for immunocontraceptive vaccines—signaling clear Congressional intent for the BLM to scale humane, in-the-wild management. 👏

[Verizon News @VerizonNews]

Verizon's team is on the ground actively working to fix today’s service issue that is impacting some customers. We know this is a huge inconvenience, and our top priority is to get you back online and connected as fast as possible. We appreciate your patience while we work to resolve this issue.

[ABC News @ABC]

NEW: At least 175,000 Verizon customers across the nation experienced a service outage, according to service disruption tracker Downdetector. https://t.co/uqyiHWvRdv