World Polio Day
Rotary members in North Bay are marking progress toward a polio-free world while helping to end the paralyzing disease
North Bay Rotary members in North Bay are taking action in honor of World Polio Day to raise awareness, funds, and support to end polio, a vaccine-preventable disease that still threatens children in parts of the world today.
On Thursday, October 24 at 10:00 am, Rotarians will be participating on a 1-hour walk, starting at the Rotary Splash Pad, in support of World Polio Day/polio eradication.
Ghislaine Côté, Walk Coordinator, commented that “the public are welcome to participate in the walk and/or to make a donation to the Rotary Club of North Bay, requesting their contribution be designated to the PolioPlus fund”.
Polio anywhere is a threat everywhere, and Rotary members from North Bay have raised funds over the years to end the paralyzing virus, which will be only the second human disease ever to be eradicated.
Rotary has contributed more than US$2.7 billion to fight polio and countless volunteer hours since launching its PolioPlus program in 1985. In 1988, Rotary joined in partnership with the World Health Organization, UNICEF, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to form the Global Polio Eradication Initiative. The Gates Foundation and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, later joined. When the initiative launched, there were 350,000 cases of polio every year. Today, the incidence of polio has plummeted by more than 99.9%.
To sustain this progress and continue to reach every child with the polio vaccine, Rotary has committed to raising US$50 million each year to support global polio eradication efforts. The Gates Foundation has pledged to match that 2-to-1 for a total yearly contribution of US$150 million.
About Rotary
Rotary brings together a global network of community leaders dedicated to tackling the world’s most pressing humanitarian challenges. We connect 1.4 million members from more than 46,000 Rotary clubs across the world. Their service improves lives both locally and internationally, from helping those in need in their own communities to working toward a polio-free world.
Visit Rotary.org and endpolio.org for more about Rotary and its efforts to eradicate polio. For more about the Rotary Club of North Bay visit www.rotaryclubofnorthbay.org.