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In honor of World Polio Day, which is recognized on Oct. 24, the Rotary Club of Williamsport will host a "World's Greatest Meal" to help end polio at noon Monday in the Capital Lounge of the Community Arts Center.
According to a news release, rather than enjoy the typical lunch, members and guests will donate their regular luncheon cost to the Polio Plus Fund. Guest speakers for the day include a polio survivor and a preview on the upcoming Community Arts Center season.
Members of the community are invited to attend the meeting. Additional information can be found at www.wgmeal.org.
"During the World Polio Day, we will be reviewing Rotary's latest efforts to eradicate polio from our planet, as we celebrate the 35th anniversary of the founding of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative," the news release said. "The world is on the verge of eliminating one of the most dreaded diseases of the 20th century -- poliomyelitis. During the first half of the 20th century, polio crippled over a half a million people every year. Even today, children in some developing countries continue to fall victim to the disease. But thanks in large part to Rotary International and to the 1.4 million Rotary members worldwide, the disease will soon be all but a memory. As World Polio Day draws closer, the world is 99.9 percent polio-free, but the fight to end polio is not over, and Rotary Clubs world-wide continue to raise funds to meet the challenge."
When Rotary and its partners launched the Global Polio Eradication Initiative in 1988, there were 350,000 cases of polio in 125 countries every year, the news release said. Rotary Clubs and their partners made great progress against the disease since then. Today, polio cases have been reduced by 99.9 percent, to 7 cases so far this year - two in Pakistan, and five in Afghanistan.
"We remain committed to the end," the news release said.
Since 1985, Rotary members world-wide have contributed nearly $2.2 billion to help immunize nearly 3 billion children against polio, and we have helped secure billions of dollars from donor governments worldwide, according to the news release. Because of the efforts of Rotary and its partners, nearly 19.4 million people who would otherwise have been paralyzed are walking, and more than 1.5 million people are alive who would otherwise have died.
With polio nearly eradicated, Rotary and its partners must sustain this progress and continue to reach every child with the polio vaccine. Without full funding and political commitment, this paralyzing disease could return to polio-free countries, putting children everywhere at risk. Since 2020, and again during this Rotary year, Rotarians have been challenged to raise US$50 million each year to support global polio eradication efforts. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has again pledged to match that 2 for 1, for a yearly annual contribution of $150 million.