The SuperWalk for Parkinson's doesn't happen for another couple of months but Maria Wahl's fundraising has already been so successful that she's had to raise her target amount.

Wahl, Port Moody's bylaw coordinator, was hoping to raise $13,000 for this year's walk. Eight years into her battle with Parkinson's, she'd wanted to take a break from fundraising this year but changed her mind after some spirited protests from her grandchildren.

Still, the $13,000 target was a little less than the $15,000 she raised last year. With about two months left to go before the Aug. 30 walk in Vancouver and her total collected already sitting at $12,965, Wahl has since upped the goal to $15,000.

Wahl, who is the president of CUPE Local 825, which covers city staff, has focused her fundraising efforts on her union counterparts.

"I figured this year would be tougher for individuals," she said. "A lot of people have been hit hard, either through their investments or losing their jobs, or even their kids losing their jobs."

In her five years of participating in the SuperWalk for Parkinson's, Wahl has raised $44,000 to help find a cure.

Wahl maintains a rigourous approach to handling the disease, a degenerative brain condition that affects people's motor skills and speech.

She's scaled back her work week, does yoga and exercises frequently. A personal trainer is helping Wahl strengthen her core to prevent the "hunched over" posture that often afflicts those with Parkinson's.

And there's also her growing collection of inspirational tattoos, a trademark that started with some Chinese characters on her arm. Recent additions include an eye with Ghandi's famous quote, "Be the change you want to see," written underneath.

But when a Jewish symbol for life appeared near her ankle, Wahl jokes that her kids "cut her off."

"Four are enough, they said."

Her daughter, Erin Wahl, is also a fundraising dynamo; she helped organized a Dancing with Parkinson's event that raised $20,000.

But despite all her efforts Wahl suffered a serious setback when she developed dyskinesia, a side effect of the medication that causes painful, involuntary muscle jerking.

"I feel now like we're in an 'Amazing Race' for a cure," Wahl said. "It can't come fast enough."

• To sponsor Wahl in the 2009 SuperWalk for Parkinson's visit www.superwalk.com and click on "Pleadge a Walker."

spayne@tricitynews.com