Last month we took a look at the end of an era with the passing of Martha Ann Lillard, the last person to use the “Iron Lung”! What a dramatic photo you saw of her. The photo you see this month is truly just as dramatic as you see how widespread the use of the Iron Lung was as you look upon a number of children in them at a clinic from years gone by. 

This month I want to take a look at truly how far we have come in stamping out polio and how it really has only been a march of approximately 40 years where we Rotarians have been involved in the fight. Think back on the arrival of the Polio vaccine developed by Dr. Jonas Salk in 1953. It was declared to be fully safe and began widespread use in the United States in 1955 saving thousands of lives. The insert within the photo to the left shows how it was initially administered, given by a shot in the arm and then it moved to being given in a sugar cube. I told you how pleased as a young lad I was to receive it that way. From there it moved to being administered by just a couple of drops in the month and I have told you how pleased and proud I was to have the opportunity to deliver the vaccine that way in India myself.

It might be easy for Rotarians to think we have been involved in the fight going back to those early days of the 1950’s, however that actually isn’t true. We didn’t become part of this fight until 1985, a mere 40 years ago and did you know that as recently as 1988 over 350,000 children were paralyzed by polio worldwide striking children in over 125 countries. Now with the help of Rotary in partnership with the World Health Organization, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and UNICEF the number has decreased by over 99.9% worldwide with only two countries today where the wild Polio virus can be found. They are Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The work done by Rotary with these two organizations has pushed our immunization numbers to over 3 billion children and we have contributed over 2.9 billion dollars to date in this fight. There are so many ways Rotarians can raise funds for this continued fight by holding specific fundraising events and awareness campaigns to further engage the public with us to make what was once a dream into the realized reality of full eradication of the disease.

Today we raise $50 million per year for this fight and because of the 2 to1 match we obtain from the Gates foundation we are contributing over $150 million per year. Rotarians never lack unique ways of raising funds for this venture. Mike McGovern, Chair of the Polio Oversight Board and Chair of Rotary’s International PolioPlus Committee tells in an article about the “Flight to End Polio” initiative taken on by Rotarians Peter Teahen, Ed Galkin, and John Ockenfels who took a trip around the world in a single-engine Cessna to raise funds in 2023 and then again last year in 2025, Teahen teamed up with Galkin once again to take a similar flight across the Atlanta. The first flight took in 19 counties in 90 days. Both trips raised over $2 million dollars. Rather impressive to say the least. That may be rather aggressive for most of us, but that doesn’t mean we aren’t doing our part to make eradication a reality. We must continue to raise dollars and the awareness for Polio. Every dollar counts and don’t forget the 2 to 1 match by the Gates Foundation. Your dollars go toward your Foundation contribution totals.

Remember that October 24 is World Polio Day a day worldwide we celebrate all that has been accomplished in the quest toward eradication of this disease.

If I can personally assist you in any way, please don’t hesitate to reach out to Bob Hagan via cell or email. Until next time, I’m here to help and together we will….Create Lasting Impact!