ROTARY Club members on Saipan are taking action in honor of World Polio Day to raise awareness, funds, and support to end polio, a vaccine-preventable disease that still threatens children in parts of the world today.
On Friday, Oct. 18, 2024, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Garapan Central Park roundhouse, Rotarians are joining Fitbeat Zumba instructors Helly Montes, Art Salazar, Susan Galman, Zhang Chunhua, and Kazu Castro as well as coaches Joel Vallejo, Moji de Luna and Irene Holl, along with other Zumba groups, participants, Interact Clubs and Rotaract Clubs in a dance-a-thon fundraiser to #EradicatePolio in support of World Polio Day on Oct. 24, 2024.
The event is open to the community. Tickets are being sold by Rotarians and could be purchased on the day of the event for $5 each. Also, T-shirts will be sold for $10, as well as raffle tickets for prizes. All proceeds will be donated to Rotary’s PolioPlus campaign.
A proclamation signing to acknowledge World Polio Day will be held during the Rotary Club of Saipan’s general membership meeting on Oct. 22, 2024 at The Terrace Private Room, Crowne Plaza Resort, Garapan Saipan at 12 p.m.
Some famous people who had polio include Franklin D. Roosevelt, the 32nd president of the United States, and Canadian actor Donald Sutherland.
Polio anywhere is a threat everywhere, and members of the Rotary Club of Saipan, District 2750 have long worked to end the paralyzing virus, which will be only the second human disease ever to be eradicated. They have raised a total of $106,734 to date through individual member and club donations.
Rotary has contributed more than $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%.
To sustain this progress and continue to reach every child with the polio vaccine, Rotary has committed to raising $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 $150 million.
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.
For more information about the Rotary Club of Saipan, contact its president, Joann T. Aquino, at rotarysaipan@gmail.com or follow its Instagram (@rotarySaipan) and Facebook accounts (@rotaryclubsaipan).
