Photo courtesy Rotary International
Rotarians in Pagosa Springs will participate in World Polio Day efforts to raise awareness, funds, and support to end polio. On Oct. 25, Rotary members will ring bells at City Market and ask for your contributions, large or small. Your donation to Rotary International’s PolioPlus fund will help us achieve a world in which no child is paralyzed by polio again.
By Donna Mosher | Rotary Club of Pagosa Springs
The first round of an international campaign to vaccinate children in the Gaza Strip against polio last month vaccinated nearly 560,000 kids, who received initial doses amid pauses in the war there. Stamping out the virus, however, will require a second round of vaccinations. Children need two doses of this vaccine for effective protection against polio.
The recent detection of variant poliovirus type-2 isolates in environmental samples and the confirmation of a 10-month-old child who has contracted polio in Gaza—the territory’s first confirmed report of polio in 25 years—is a stark reminder that as long as polio exists anywhere, it is a threat everywhere. Rotary International committed $500,000 to bolster the Gaza initiative, channeling these funds through a dedicated Polio Outbreak Response Fund.
Rotarians in Pagosa Springs will act in honor of World Polio Day to raise awareness, funds, and support to end polio. On October 25, Rotary members will ring bells at City Market and ask for your contributions, large or small. Your donation to Rotary International’s PolioPlus fund will help us achieve a world in which no child is paralyzed by polio again.
In 1985, Rotary adopted the goal of immunizing all of the world’s children against polio. In 1988, the World Health Organization joined Rotary International in the fight against polio. The Gates Foundation joined with Rotary in 2002.
It’s vital that the campaign in Gaza succeed not only for the children there but for children in neighboring areas and worldwide. 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.
If we miss you on October 25, please consider donating online at endpolio.org or mail a check to Rotary Pagosa CAF, P.O. Box 685, Pagosa Springs, CO 81147.