On Sunday, October 24 the Rotary Club of Southampton gathered at Perkins Park to celebrate World Polio Day and give their annual contribution of $2000 to the Rotary Foundation's Polio Plus campaign.

Hub Staff

The Rotary Club of Southampton took some time Sunday to celebrate historic progress toward a world free from polio as they marked World Polio Day October 24 at Perkins Park in Southampton. The Club also donated $2000 to the Rotary Foundation, an annual contribution to their Polio Plus campaign.

Rotary, along with its partners, launched a global polio eradication initiative in 1998. At the time there were 350,000 cases in 125 countries each year. Today, polio cases have been reduced by 99.9 percent with just two countries, Afghanistan and Pakistan, still reporting cases of wild poliovirus.

"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 so easily return to polio-free countries, putting children everywhere at risk," read an October 20 media release from Southampton Rotary.

Rotary has committed to raising $50 million USD each year to support continued efforts and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has pledged to match that two-to-one for a total annual contribution of $150 million.

Last year, an "End Polio Now" tulip garden was planted at Perkins Park in Southampton to commemorate polio eradication efforts by Rotary and its partners.