Ex-Everton owner's £2.5m Parkinson's legacy
Family handoutA donation of £2.5m in the memory of former Everton FC chairman and Tranmere Rovers owner Peter Johnson will go towards research into Parkinson's disease.
Mr Johnson was diagnosed with the condition in 2014 and died in January aged 84.
The donation, which is the biggest the Johnson Foundation has made since it started in 1987, will help the University of Liverpool and The Walton Centre NHS Foundation Trust drive forward new discoveries, treatments and interventions into the disease.
Kate Eugeni, daughter of Mr Johnson and chairman of the foundation, said the family was "proud and privileged" to have been able to make the donation.
'Passionate about research'
She told BBC Radio Merseyside: "It's very debilitating and for someone who was physically active and would be travelling and doing things, to have that lifestyle curbed by this disease really frustrated him.
"He had been party to all of the initial conversations with the university, asking questions about how this donation could make an impact, and was passionate that this research would happen here in Liverpool."
Parkinson’s disease, a complex neurodegenerative disorder, affects more than 10 million people worldwide.
The donation will endow the joint appointment of a new Peter Johnson Chair in Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders at the University and The Walton Centre, alongside a Clinical Lecturer, Postdoctoral Researcher and PhD Researcher positions.
Professor Louise Kenny, Executive Pro-Vice-Chancellor for the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, said: "Thanks to this generous donation from the Johnson family, our collaborative research into Parkinson's disease with The Walton Centre will go from strength to strength.
"It will help to improve our understanding of the underlying biology, develop new treatment strategies and improve patient outcomes and quality of life."
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