At Fox’s annual fundraising gala, Pollan tells PEOPLE how she and her husband, who wed in 1988 and share four kids, stay positive

NEED TO KNOW

• Michael J. Fox’s wife, Tracy Pollan, opened up to PEOPLE about how they stay positive amid the actor’s Parkinson’s journey
• Pollan shared the insights at The Michael J. Fox Foundation’s A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Cure Parkinson’s gala
• Fox and Pollan, who share four kids, wed in 1988, and he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 1991

Michael J. Fox’s wife, Tracy Pollan, is sharing how the longtime couple stays positive amid the actor’s journey with Parkinson’s.

Pollan, 66, supported Fox, 65, at The Michael J. Fox Foundation’s A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Cure Parkinson’s event, a fundraising gala benefitting Parkinson’s research and the race to find a cure for the disease, in New York City on Saturday, Nov. 14.

At the star-studded event, held at the Waldorf Astoria, Pollan also shared with PEOPLE how the pair, who have been married since 1988, stays positive amid Fox’s journey with Parkinson’s.

“I think you just have to do it day by day,” Pollan told PEOPLE at the 26th annual event on Saturday. “You have to look at what’s in front of you … and you have to stay in the moment — and if the moment is okay, that’s where you are.”

One thing the Back to the Future star and his wife do every single day that makes them both happy, she told PEOPLE, is share a meal together.

“I mean, it’s funny because we have very different tastes in books and very different tastes in what we watch, but we both always love a great meal,” Pollan said, “so I’m gonna say our meals together make us happy.”

Fox was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 1991, sharing the news in a PEOPLE cover story, and he created his foundation nine years later in 2000. This year’s gala, which was hosted by Denis Leary, featured musical performances by John Mayer and Brad Paisley, as well as comedy sets from Josh Johnson and Tom Papa.

Elsewhere in her chat with PEOPLE at the gala, Pollan shared what the night means to her, Fox and the rest of the foundation’s team.

“It’s all about the amazing work that the foundation has done. It celebrates everybody who’s worked with us for 20-plus years,” she explained. “Just the huge and amazing amount of money that’s been raised that goes directly into the scientists’ pockets, and they can just do all the work that’s necessary [to finding a cure]. We really are seeing so much progress.”

Fox and Pollan were also joined at this year’s gala by their daughters — Esmé, 25, and twins Aquinnah and Schuyler, 31 — on the red carpet. The couple also shares son Sam, 37.

At last year’s gala, as his foundation celebrated its 25th anniversary, Fox spoke to PEOPLE about his family’s continued love and support for him amid his diagnosis.

“They’re so supportive and so great,” he said, adding of the gala’s attendees, “All these people are friends of mine, family, and it’s really great to see them, and I walk on the red carpet surprised to see them, and I think, ‘Well, why should I be surprised?’ They’ve always been there for me, and they continue to be for me, year after year.”

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Meanwhile, Pollan told PEOPLE at the 2025 event that the couple’s four children are “just incredibly supportive” of Fox.

“Michael is so optimistic, which is wonderful and really helps him, but it’s really important to also understand that this is a huge challenge. It’s very difficult for the family, for the caregivers and, obviously, for the patient,” she said at the time. “So it’s important to acknowledge that and acknowledge that it’s not just all sort of easy. It’s not easy. It’s hard for them, but they show up and they’re there for us.”

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