When the Good Lord carved out his kind, considerate, caring and ever-determined prototype, he created the “Gail Quick’’ model.
With an emphasis on “ever determined,’’ and a heavy dose of “kind.’’
Along her 60-plus-year path, Quick, possessor of a songbird-like singing voice, warm heart, and kind soul, was thrown a life-changing curve in July of 2024.
That’s when doctors told her she had Parkinson’s disease, a progressive brain disorder that primarily affects movement causing symptoms like tremors, slowness of movement and muscle stiffness.
While not currently curable, medications, progressive and proven therapies can help manage symptoms and improve quality of life.
Here is where Rock Valley Physical and a bevy of therapists – in over 60 clinics across four states – trained to better the lives of Parkinson’s patients – shines. For Quick, Rock Valley’s 53rd Street Clinic, located in Davenport, Iowa, has been a bastion of help and hope.
Trained therapists there use the LSVT (Lee Silverman Voice Treatment) BIG model to train improved movements for any activity, whether “small motor” tasks like buttoning a shirt or “large motor” tasks like getting up from the sofa or chair or maintaining balance while walking.
LSVT Big treatment improves walking, self-care and other tasks by helping people “recalibrate” how they perceive their movements with what others see. It also teaches them how and when to apply extra effort to produce bigger motions – more like the movements of everyone around them.
Under the guidance of Kylie Lucas, M.S., CCC-SLP, Elizabeth “Liz’’ Brandt, MOT, OTR/L, CHT and Becky Burke, PT, DPT, GCS, clinic manager, Rock Valley’s 53rd also incorporates SPEAK OUT! Therapy Program, developed by Parkinson Voice Project.
SPEAK OUT! is designed to improve volume, articulation, breath support for speech, vocal quality, intonation, and facial expression. Patients and families also report improved swallowing.
In addition, Rock Valley Physical Therapy clinics offer PIE – Quad Cities Parkinson’s Information & Exercise Club – a monthly discussion-based group for people with Parkinson’s and their care partners. It includes education, peer support, and exercise.
PIE, brought to life in March of 2025, will begin another round of gatherings in September 2025.
Quick’s husband, Reverend Terry Quick, pastor at Davenport’s Holy Cross Lutheran Church – wanting to know more and to assist his wife and better her chances of fighting Parkinson’s, arranged – with her neurologist – to bring Gail Quick to Rock Valley’s 53rd Street Location.
It was Burke, the clinic manager at 53rd, who familiarized the Quicks with the program, followed by Brandt, while Lucas – an amazing speech therapist – handled the SPEAK OUT! portion of Gail Quick’s path to a better life.
The Rock Valley trio, along with Gail and Terry Quick, have done amazing work.
“It’s been awesome,’’ Gail Quick said of her Rock Valley/LSTV experience. “Becky (Burke) got me started and I immediately fell in love with the program. When I came in, I was walking with a cane and had no sense of balance. My balance was horrible. My stamina, my strength, my memory, and my attitude were also not good. I was having trouble with my speech as well. My voice was not strong. We live in a small house, and I could get around by walking the walls, hanging on to the wall and furniture when I needed to move, but I needed help. And we found it here (with Rock Valley).’’
Attitude and effort, Gail Quick says, can be everything. Knowing there was tremendous, compassionate care from great therapists at 53rd – and an outstanding front office staff that made them feel welcomed at every turn – played a vital role in her working to fight off Parkinson’s charge.
“Encouragement was everywhere,’’ Gail Quick said. “Right away, I felt more positive about myself and then the results – the positive results from the exercises – all of them – began to happen. I felt more positive about myself and even took our dog for a walk for the first time in two years.”
“The program was/is intense, but a good intensity,’’ Gail Quick added. “I have benefitted from the SPEAK OUT! part of the program as well. There were times when I over-did some things and it was exhausting, but it was a good kind of exhausting. I can even carry the laundry to the basement. Knowing where I was and where we are today gives us hope. And we have the tools to do things that help us outside the clinic. The support group (PIE) is great for me and for Terry. It’s great networking because it’s others in the same situation who can relate.’’
Brandt, like Lucas and Burke, is an ever engaging and compassionate therapist. She marveled at the tireless effort Gail Quick has put into getting where she is today.
“Gail has also done her homework without complaint,’’ Brandt said. “That’s a testament to her and the support system she has with Terry, her children, and her grandchildren. Gail made sure there was a positive outcome. When you work four days a week for a month with all that we were doing, you form a friendship. I have that with Gail. Plus, I have so much admiration for her work and her desire to get better. This is the why to why I do what I do.’’
Ever dedicated to his wife, Terry Quick is one of life’s genuinely good souls. He is a caring man, humble to a fault, with an amazing sense of humor and tremendous, say-the-right-thing timing. Even with a life steeped in faith, watching his wife struggle brought difficult moments. But Quick’s association with Rock Valley and its many avenues to better Gail Quick’s life gives him hope.
“As a caregiver, the early stages of what Gail was going through were simply hard to watch,’’ he said. “She was so vibrant, so involved. I would watch her as an interpreter for the deaf, the skills and determination it took to bring every word to life, took great skill. And she was great at it. Then to see this amazing woman being prone to falls and unable to do certain things you take for granted, was hard. It was hard to watch as the caregiver because I know how awesome she is and how she has battled other issues as well. We had no real answers for help until here. I’m more impressed than I thought I would be.’’
On this day, Gail Quick’s speech was clear, there was volume, and there was confidence, a direct result of the SPEAK OUT! work she and Lucas shared.
Time was, Gail Quick’s words dragged, her voice would fade and something so important – her church singing voice – just wasn’t there.
After working diligently with Lucas one of Gail Quick’s dreams was Easter, 2025.
It was the first time since her diagnosis she sang with her church choir. It was a monumental achievement and a glorious day for all involved.
“This is the why to why I do what I do,’’ Lucas, amazing her role, said, echoing the same sentiments as Brandt, noting she and Quick worked memory word finds, cognition, and strategies on how if Gail Quick was stuck on a word, she will use given tools as to what to look for and how to come back to the word.
The duo worked exceptionally hard on aspects of SPEAK OUT! They utilized relatable strategies and Gail Quick learned to speak with intensity and purpose under Lucas’s care and guidance, acting as if she were a company CEO addressing those she must lead.
“Gail and I also worked memory – through a variety of ways – which is such an important part of her fight,’’ added Lucas. “It was a constant push of Gail’s voice as well. And we pushed her brain to the limit and gave Gail everyday tools to help her when we are not together. I love getting her back to her passions.’’
Lucas, Gail Quick said, knew what she was doing, knew all the right ways to motivate her and never once – even on tough days – stepped back in her approach.
“I wanted to be pushed to do everything I could to help make myself improve and get back to my passions,’’ Gail Quick said. “I had been in (church) choir since I was age six. It has always been a passion of mine. I missed even hymn singing which was a struggle (before Rock Valley). Things are so much better thanks to everyone at Rock Valley.’’
One word, a word that Gail Quick was in search of the day she shared her story, continues to find its way back to her. Confidence.
“It has brought me comfort and motivated Gail, knowing there is help from people who care.’’
By: Johnny Marx, Rock Valley Storyteller