Polio Plus - Rotary's project to help with other agencies to eradicate Polio from the world

An account of the spectacular scheme to remove Polio from the whole world

Rotarians taking every opportunity to ensure that no child is missed during a drive to immunise a local community

The Polio Plus (Polio Immunisation) Campaign is the largest service project undertaken by Rotary and its greatest achievement. Polio created misery for hundreds of thousands causing permanent crippling or paralysis and in many cases also death. Those of an older generation will remember young people in this country being imprisoned in iron lungs to enable them to breath. In 1985, concerned that each year 350,000 contracted the disease Rotary resolved to eradicate polio from the world by means of the Salk vaccine, in collaboration mainly with the Red Cross, the W.H.O. and the U.S Centres for Disease Control. Rotary has spent over US $1.8 billion to date on the campaign. 2.5 billion children have been protected with very many Rotarians taking part in mass immunisations in some instances of several million children in a two week period in a concentrated region of Asia. In the last few years the Bill Gates Foundation (Bill Gates the American philanthropist and his wife Melinda) has joined the Rotary Polio Campaign and has made the offer that for every £1 raised by Rotary he will triple the sum so that £1 becomes £3 which is a large incentive for Rotary to maximise its fundraising for this worthy cause.

Today there are less than a hundred cases in the world and we expect to remove this scourge within a few years but the fight must not be allowed to weaken - we are 99.999% there. We need public support to reach our final goal of complete eradication. Once we have achieved this Rotary will no doubt enter into a fresh challenge to improve the lives of humanity.

Our club has been very active over the years in fundraising to support this great cause by organising events and holding street collections. We consider the ongoing fight to eradicate Polio to be the greatest of Rotary's achievements in its long history.

You can find out much more about Polio Plus from various easily accessible websites linked to this one and by using your internet browser.

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'What We Do' Main Pages:

Worthing Rotary Hobbies and Leisure Exhibition

The exhibition takes place every 2 years, the last one being at the Bohunt College, Broadwater, Worthing in March 2020

A potted history of Rotary International

Rotary Young Writer Competition

This is a Rotary competition to encourage young people to exercise their talents with the written word.

Press Release

Our cub's collaboration with Worthing Speakers' Club

Application for Financial Assistance from our Club

Opportunity for those under exceptional circumstances and who are unable to obtain funding from statutory authorities- local or national

Lifelites provides specialist technology for children's hospices across the British Isles

Rotary Kids Out Day, held each June, is supported by Rotary Clubs throughout the country

Quiz Night to raise funds for the Moroccan earthquake appeal.

Following the death of Tony Hill his family have commissioned a memorial glass panel in his memory on Worthing Pier

Sue Baldock, immediate past president hands over a cheque for £1000 to the local homeless charity 'Turning Tides'.

A seven day residential course for young people in their teens to hone their leadership potential

Citation from Worthing Borough Council in 1997 to celebrate our club's 75 years service to the town

We celebrated our Centenary in 2022.

The new certificate is reproduced herewith. We shall celebrate our centenary in 2022

For Requests for Financial Assistance

Please go to 'What we do do' section and scroll down to access the simple form which needs to be completed sent as indicated, which is headed 'Application for Financial Assistance'