2022 Sundowner for Polio Plus
International Director Sandra McGuire welcomed everyone and reminded us that the evening was a fundraiser for End Polio Now. Everyone had received a lucky door prize ticket on entry and was also given the opportunity to purchase raffle tickets in aid of the cause.
Polio is a paralysing and potentially deadly infectious disease that most commonly affects children under the age of five. Thanks to vaccines it is preventable.
Rotary has been working to eradicate polio for more than 35 years and the goal to rid the world of this disease is very close. Today more than 20,000,000 children around the world are walking around due to the eradication of polio by Rotary International and WHO.
However, the fight is far from over. This year polio has shown up in the USA, London and Israel. As a nation, we are extremely well travelled and these three countries are very popular destinations for us. With almost 1.5 million people in Australia unvaccinated, this is major concern. We can be very proud of the work Rotary does for this program.
Following a presentation by our guest speaker, polio survivor Neville Baker, Sandra first drew the door prizes and then the many raffle prizes. Club members are well aware that our very popular Attendance Officer Sam is extraordinarily lucky with raffles (possibly because he buys a lot of tickets). His ticket was drawn out no less than four times!
Sandra thanked everyone for coming and for the generous support shown to the program. She gave special thanks to our sponsors for donating the raffle prizes.