Members of the Center Rotary Club are participating in the World Polio Day emphasis through Rotary International’s goal of a polio-free world while helping to end the paralyzing disease
October 14, 2024 - Rotary International members in over 140 nations across the globe are taking action in honor of World Polio Day, October 24th, to raise awareness, funds, and support to end polio, a vaccine-preventable disease that still threatens children in parts of the world today.
On Tuesday, October 22nd, the members of the Rotary Club of Center, Texas are joining other Rotary Clubs in support of World Polio Day/polio eradication.
Polio anywhere is a threat everywhere, and Rotary members have long worked 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%. Polio is endemic only two countries, Afghanistan and Pakistan.
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.
The Rotary Club of Center will donate $2,000 toward the project of ending Polio.
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.
