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Parkinson's just part of worldly chef's story

Tony Burrows has travelled and lived in exotic destinations the world over. But when he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2012, it threw his life of being an executive hotelier and former chef into upheaval.
Tony Burrows
Tony Burrows with wife Ni and children Chris and Michelle. Burrows, a well-travelled hotelier, penned an autobiography that goes beyond his Parkinson's diagnosis.

Tony Burrows has travelled and lived in exotic destinations the world over.

But when he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2012, it threw his life of being an executive hotelier and former chef into upheaval. He could no longer communicate clearly, he lost full control of his body and became cognizant that any fall could do serious damage to him.

That's why he's selfpublished a book, From a Hotelier to Parkinson's Disease, to share his experience and offer advice to anyone interested in adventuring across the world as a chef and support for those struggling with the disease.

When he was young, Burrows didn't know what he wanted to do with his life after partially losing sight in one eye ended his dream of becoming a pilot in the air force.

An interest was sparked, however, when his father introduced him to a family friend who was a successful chef. Burrows decided to give cooking a try.

"If it weren't for my mom and dad's support, I would not have had the career that I was to enjoy so immensely," he wrote in an email — his preferred mode of communication these days given the effects of Parkinson's on his speech.

After becoming a chef, he rose through the ranks within his hotel chain and became a manager, working at resorts around the world, including exotic locales such as Tahiti, Bora Bora, Fiji and Egypt. But his passion for cooking was never taken off the back burner.

"In fact, it was something I had tried to do whilst living back in Vancouver, but sadly it wasn't to be as the Parkinson's disease had already started to affect the volume of my voice, and so I could no longer communicate either verbally or legibly," said Burrows, adding that the inability to communicate clearly is one of the most frustrating symptoms of the disease.

"This Parkinson's disease has most certainly changed my outlook on life," he said. "It has made me think so much more positively that very little fazes me these days.

"I wake up each and every morning with an, 'OK, so what am I going to achieve today' attitude, and then I think to myself, 'Well Tony, life could be so much worse.'" Burrows, who now lives in North Vancouver, said he wrote the book to leave as his legacy for the children he may not have the chance to watch grow up, and for the grandchildren he may not be alive long enough to meet.

Three weeks ago, Burrows said he found out that his Parkinson's diagnosis may change to Multiple System Atrophy, which gives people between three and six years to live, "but despite this, I remain as positive as ever and have every intention of beating the odds and living to the ripe old age of 90."

"What inspired me to write this book was the fact that I wanted to be able to leave something behind for my children and my grandchildren to read so that they could understand a bit more of what I have been through," he said.

The book will be available on Amazon Dec. 10. A portion of the proceeds from book sales will be donated to the Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research.

"I think it is important for people to read my story as it gives an insight into the hotel business and at the same time, I believe, offers some advice to those who have just been diagnosed with this so far incurable nightmare called Parkinson's disease," he noted.

Burrows' next book, The Journeys, A Positive Approach to Living with Parkinson's Disease, is expected to hit the shelves in May. For more information, visit www.tonyburrows.net.