About Frank V. Cahouet
Frank V. Cahouet (pronounced “CAH-ou-et”) was the hard-charging chief executive who led Mellon Bank (now, BNY Mellon) to its historic turnaround in the late 1980’s. A Boston native, Mr. Cahouet worked for some 25 years in California banks before arriving at Mellon’s Pittsburgh headquarters in 1987 – the first CEO who had not arisen from inside Mellon’s ranks.
Frank Cahouet was a team-builder and a visionary. At Mellon, and as board chair and board member of nonprofits that included Allegheny Health, Education, Research Foundation (AHERF), he knew the value of working with a team of dedicated experts. Several years after Mr. Cahouet retired from Mellon, he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. He decided to create the AHN Cahouet Center for Comprehensive Parkinson’s Care to bring the same team approach to patient care.
Frank V. Cahouet’s Story of Hope
Frank Cahouet envisioned the AHN Cahouet Center as a treatment center that could offer every available resource for battling Parkinson’s disease. He believed that if patients and their families had access to the resources to manage Parkinson’s and affect the course of the disease, they could find hope. He believed hope was the most important resource of all.
The Cahouet Center for Comprehensive Parkinson’s Care opened in 2016 at Allegheny General Hospital Suburban Campus. Since then, an additional location has been opened to offer patients diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease convenient access in Pittsburgh’s South Hills.
The Cahouet Family Reflects on His Life and Legacy
In June of 2017, our dad passed away from complications of Parkinson’s disease. But Parkinson’s never beat Dad. For years, he managed his Parkinson’s with dignity and faith and a fierce determination to stay connected to the world. Dad kept working for solutions to benefit other people. He stayed engaged with his community. He continued to serve on boards and insisted on attending board meetings across the country, even when one of us siblings had to travel with him to help navigate airports and ground transportation.
But the challenge that meant the most to Dad was helping families living with Parkinson’s manage the complexities of the disease and take advantage of the growing menu of treatments and therapies. Dad knew from his own experience that staying active and positive and connected to life beyond illness could affect the course of PD and make possible a happy and productive life. He understood the power of hope. He knew that even as he and other people lived with Parkinson’s, they could find resilience in knowing how to influence Parkinson’s effect on their lives. Dad knew that the best way to help people find hope was to coordinate resources so people with Parkinson’s and their families did not drain their energies searching for them.
That understanding inspired the AHN Cahouet Center for Comprehensive Parkinson’s Care, an initiative with Allegheny Health Network. At the Cahouet Center, families can find dedicated neurologists who specialize in treating Parkinson’s, speech therapists, physical and occupational therapists, referrals to boxing and music therapy, and every resource available.
Meanwhile at home, managing Parkinson's with Dad was a family affair. We developed rituals that offered us new sources of fun and joy. On trips to Subway in Quaker Village, Mom and Dad would sit in the car while we went inside to place the order. We would eat our tuna melts in the car and watch the passing trains. Eventually, we moved family dinners to Mom and Dad’s big bed, where we would watch Netflix and talk. We still came to Dad for advice about business and life. Even as he struggled to speak, he was still our dad and we respected his wisdom. Parkinson’s taught us all that life goes on, with adjustments, and with acceptance of sadness and loss. But what remains is priceless.
Donate
Learn how you can provide hope and help for patients with Parkinson’s and their families by making a financial donation to the AHN Cahouet Center for Comprehensive Parkinson’s Care.
Contact us
If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, know that you don’t have to face the challenges alone. Call (412) 359-8850 to schedule an appointment at the AHN Cahouet Center for Comprehensive Parkinson’s Care.
