Rotary club raises funds to help end deadly virus

Lynn’s Priory Rotary club joined thousands of Rotarians in a walking campaign with hopes of ending Polio.

Several members of the club along with friends and partners took part in the walk around Roydon Common on World Polio Day (October 25).

A total of 24 people took part and raised £300, which will be tripled by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, making a grand total of £900.

Walkers were treated to refreshments at president Paul Batterham’s home.

Victims of polio frequently suffer paralysis and muscle wasting, requiring them to wear callipers to walk or even confining them to a wheelchair. To show solidarity with polio sufferers, Rotarians across Britain marked World Polio Day in many ways, often including walks, to raise money and awareness of this preventable disease.

The Priory Rotary End Polio Now Walk was organised by Elizabeth Eagling.

A global campaign of vaccinations spearheaded by Rotary has almost wiped out polio, with an estimated 16 million people walking today who would otherwise have been paralysed by this virus.

Going forward, Rotarians have set themselves a task to eradicate the last 0.1% of cases.

In the picture, Margaret Tasker is holding Ollie, Priory’s well-travelled polio bear.

The bear is in memory of Dr Peter Tasker who championed the End Polio Now campaign within the Rotary for many years.