Frugal Meal

Mon, Oct 5th 2026 at 7:15 pm - 9:15 pm

In support of Polio Plus. Tickets £15

Rotary Club of Birstall Luddites
Frugal meal plus
Roberts 90th Birthday Award.

Robert with is Certificate of Recognition in Honour of his 90th Birthday.

Frugal Meal October 2026

Our annual frugal meal, raising money for the End Polio Campaign, was held at Batley Community Centre on 5th October. The event, led by founder member Rotarian Robert Jackson, was attended by 36 Rotarians and guests and the food, consisting of soup and sandwiches, was prepared and served by one of our Honorary Members, Carol Parkinson.

The evening also marked the very special occasion of the 90th birthday of Rtn Robert. Fellow founder member, Rtn John Sugden presented Robert with a card, certificate of recognition, a meal voucher and a photo album of his time in the Rotary Club of Birstall Luddites. A birthday cake was shared by all present and, of course, we sung Happy Birthday! An emotional evening for a valued member.

Following the meal, our guest speaker was Andrew Stokes who regaled us with a lighthearted and sometimes hilarious tales of Yorkshire life and its people!

Rtn Robert, with the assistance of some of our members, updated the audience with the numbers of Polio cases across the world, demonstrating the progress that has been made since the Rotary launched the PolioPlus campaign in 1985.

In 1988 Rotary became a founding partner of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) alongside the World Health Organization (WHO), UNICEF, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):

In 1988: there were an estimated 350,000 cases of wild poliovirus globally (CDC)
Lives Saved: Since 1988, global vaccination efforts have prevented an estimated 20 million people from suffering permanent paralysis (WHO)
Mass Campaigns: In 2025 alone, global initiatives managed to immunize more than 350 million children multiple times to protect them from transmission.
Cases of Wild Poliovirus in 2026 (to date): total of 39 and these are only found in Afghanistan and Pakistan (WHO)

The event raised £692, and this figure is multiplied by 3 to £2,076 thanks to the ongoing support from the Gates Foundation.
(Words thanks to Jeremy)

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Frugal Meal

Mon, Oct 5th 2026 at 7:15 pm - 9:15 pm

In support of Polio Plus. Tickets £15

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