Nov 28, 2016 - Rod Daniels, chair of District 5510's "PolioPlus Campaign to End Polio Now" gave us a status check on the project. Rod told us that there are several partners working with Rotary on this project. Since its launch in 1988, the GlobalPolio Eradication Initiative - spearheaded by the World Health Organization (WHO), RotaryInternational, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and UNICEF - has reduced the incidence of polio by more than 99 percent. The original goal was to have complete eradication by 2018 but that won't be reached because of 4 cases in Nigeria this year.  An area or country cannot be declared as polio-free until 3 years have passed with no new cases. He explained the 5 major advantages to eliminating polio, why we should care, and why we should contribute to the project (which we did).

 

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 Nov. 21, 2016 - Renee Angeles from the Arthritis Foundation in Phoenix gave us a brief overview of her organization and its many services.

Interested readers should check the web site since there are too many programs/activities to list here. Renee surprised us when she said that Arthritis is the #1 debilitating disease in the country - 1 in 4 people are affected by this disease.  There are currently over 6000 kids in Arizona who have some form of arthritis. The foundation's goal is to cure arthritis but also to provide various consulting resources to assist people in locating the help necessary to deal with pain and to find resources.

 

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  Nov 19, 2016 - 15 year-old Gabe Fowler completed his 2nd Tour de Tucson charity bike ride, riding to End Polio and representing D5510’s Kyrene Rotary Club. He completed the 106-mile course in 7 hours & 13 minutes and raised $2,122 for TRF Polio Plus and D5500 Foundation from teachers, friends and family, and Kyrene Rotarians. Gabe is a sophomore at Gilbert’s Campo Verde high school where he just won his 2nd varsity letter in swimming. He is a grandson of Kyrene Rotarian Harry Short.

 

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 Nov 14, 2016 -  Melody Richards, a volunteer with Feed My Starving Children (FMSC) gave us an overview of the organization.  She explained the need for volunteers to pack food packets and the need for donors.  The current focus in on providing food for children in Haiti because of the terrible conditions that exist there. She reminded us that $80 provides enough food to feed a child for one year. FMSC wants to provide both food and an opportunity for the community to support itself. A sobering fact is that 18,000 children around the world die every day from starvation. Melody also explained that 99% of all the packed food does reach starving children. FMSC is ranked very highly by the Charity Navigator organization that evaluates non-profits. Her presentation generated much discussion.

 

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