The certificate states that it is given “in appreciation for its [our] financial support of End Polio Now: Countdown to History Campaign. Together we will fulfill our promise to the children of the world and eradicate polio” and is signed by John F Germ, Chair of The Rotary Foundation Trustees and Shekhar Mehta, President of Rotary International.
Welcoming the certificate on our behalf, Tony also commented how “Bob Anderson would have been pleased.” Bob, who passed away in 2021, was a great champion of End Polio Now both within our Club and in the local community. Many of us now welcome spring with purple crocuses that raise awareness of polio through Bob’s hard work; when he passed away we had a special fundraiser in his name to support End Polio Now. The e-recipe book that our Club created together with the Rotary Club of Canterbury Sunrise also mentions Bob. You can download a FREE copy of our e-recipe book here. (We welcome donations, but there are no obligations to do so.)
What is polio?
As stated on Rotary’s campaigns, poliomyelitis (or polio) is a highly infectious viral disease that most commonly affects children under the age of 5. The virus is spread person to person, typically through contaminated water. It can attack the nervous system and, in some instances, lead to paralysis. Although there is no cure, there is a safe and effective vaccine – one which Rotary and our partners use to immunise over 2.5 billion children worldwide.
As recently as the late 1980s polio was a devastating disease, endemic in 125 countries around the world. Thanks to the efforts of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI), with which Rotary partners, there are now just two countries left with wild type polio. Rotary’s PolioPlus programme was the first initiative to tackle global polio eradication by vaccinating children on a massive scale.
You can visit the End Polio Now: Countdown to History Campaign site here. It includes ideas for Rotarians and others on how to support our work towards the eradication of polio – for instance, by helping to spread the word through social media or events; it also has resources such as this lovely set of downloadable colouring pages (PDF file).
Picture: The certificate that we received from The Rotary Foundation. Picture credit: The Rotary Club of Canterbury.
