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Rotary Marks World Polio Day

Tuesday, 13 October 2015 08:40

The Rotary Club continue to fight Polio disease. The illness is now only found in two countries worldwide.

OXFORD COUNTY - Local Rotarians in Oxford County will acknowledge World Polio Day in a special way.  

The organization has made huge advancements throughout the world to attempt to eradicate the disease. Charter Member and Past President of the Woodstock-Oxford County Club, Doug Vincent, explains just how far they have come in 25 years. "It started with the initiative in 1985 where we took on the commitment and promised to the children of the world that we would eradicate polio. Back in 1985 over 272 000 children were paralysed by polio each year. This year, to date, we have 43 cases of polio reported."  

Vincent knows work still needs to be done before polio is wiped of the face of the earth. "So our recent success was a eradication in Nigeria so there is no more polio in any country expect for Afghanistan and Pakistan. We are hoping that within the next year or two we will have the final two countries controlled.  People in Woodstock and Oxford area need to be concerned about this because polio is just a plane ride away." This initiative all began after one Rotarian in the Philippines wanted to make a change and couldn't continue to see children suffer.   

The Rotary Club have spent over a billion dollars since 1985 fighting the disease, and Vincent explains how local members are prepared to spread the message. "October 24th has been declared as World Polio Day. The local Rotarians will be at the Woodstock Market on Saturday October 28th for people to go visit and learn a little bit more about polio. We just need to help those other people around the world to live a better life, live a more healthier life, and overall contribute to world peace." 

They have set a 2018 target to eliminate polio worldwide.

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