Rotary asks public to help fight polio | News

In honor of Rotary Club, oneida and Sherrill Rotary, members of the Rotary Club, continue to read their pinkies and join in the fight.

"Members and friends of the Sherrill Rotary Club have been able to polish their finger on their finger left," Sherrill Rotary President Elise Hereth said. "It is hoped that when people notice this, that a conversation about polio eradication and Rotary International will take place. "

When volunteers go to the communities to immunize children against polio, they are the children's pinkie finger to fail to ensure that they are inoculated and no one is missed.

Oneida Rotary President Maggie Argentina and Hereth invite the public to Healthy Happy Hour at the Oneida Community Mansion House on Wednesday to the Rotary nurse and to fight polio.

Wednesday's Healthy Happy Hour will also feature a silent auction where the proceeds will be sent to Rotary International, on behalf of the respective clubs.

Since Rotary and its partners launched the Global Polio Eradication Initiative 30 years ago, the incidence of polio worldwide has increased by 99.9 percent, from about 350,000 cases to just 22 cases in 2017. To sustain this progress, and protect all children from polio, Rotary has committed to raising $ 50 million per year in support of global polio eradication efforts.

Foundation Chair Clark Speicher of Sherrill Rotary and District Chair Mark Matt said wiping out polio starts with individuals in local clubs. Their efforts help bring health and peace to the world through fighting endemic diseases, providing clean drinking water, disaster relief and more.

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has been promised Rotary's commitment two to one. Without any funding and political commitment, this paralyzing disease could have returned to polio-free countries, putting children everywhere at risk. Today, only three countries in the world have stopped transmission of polio: Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria.

There is no cure for polio; it can only be prevented. Polio vaccine can protect a child for life. Failure to eradicate polio could result in as many as 200,000 new boxes every year, within 10 years, all over the world.

Despite this progress since 1988, the risk of contracting poliovirus in children is still high. The poliovirus can easily be imported into a polio-free country and spread rapidly among unimmunized populations.

For more about Rotary and its efforts to eradicate polio, visit endpolio.org.