World Polio Day

International Service Director presented a check to PP Mary Geerdes for $2,560 for the Eradication of Polio, in honor of World Polio Day on October 24, 2016. Mary Geerdes recounted the history of polio and Rotary’s involvement in assisting “crawlers” initially, and after the introduction of the Salk-Sabine vaccines, the immunization campaign. As of July 2016, there were 6 cases in Afghanistan, 13 cases in Pakistan and 2 cases in Nigeria. Rotary assists in the refrigeration, transportation and volunteer education. Polio Plus is a model of public-private partnership, with the Gates Foundation partnering with Rotary International with a 2:1 matching grant through 2018.