Planting 4 Polio

The Club are looking forward to great shows of purple crocus next spring after planting 5000 bulbs in Jubilee Gardens and a similar amount planted by Rotakids at Chaddesley Corbett school.

On 26th October there was a good turnout of members ably assisted by Ben Cookson, who took part in a Rotary Youth Camp this summer, and a member of the Bewdley museum team, the combination of whom brought the average age of the group down considerably.

After removing a large area of turf, thanks to a turf cutter loaned by Club member, Bambos' business, A1 Rentals, team leader, Neil Hardwick, got everyone digging down three to four inches and raking the soil ready for scattering the crocus bulbs. 

There was a lot of interest from passing members of the public in what was happening and it provided a great opportunity to explain about the Purple 4 Polio campaign and Rotary’s involvement with the eradication of polio. 

Within four hours of starting work the soil had been put back on top of the bulbs, the turf replaced and there was little visual evidence of the morning’s activities. 

Prior to the day’s action in Jubilee Gardens Neil and the A1 Rentals driver had called in to Chaddesley Corbett Primary School to lift the turf on an area outside of the school main entrance. This left it so that when our Rotakids Club returned from half term they could plant their 5000 bulbs. 

The new 2016/17 Rotakids group, consisting of sixteen Year 5 and Year 6 pupils, were split into two groups, under the team leaderships of President Orobosa and Vice President Chelsea, with overall supervision by Bewdley Rotary members Andrew Page and Tom Elliott. The two groups all worked enthusiastically and did an extremely good job of planting and covering the bulbs and re-turfing the area. 

It should be a real show and create great interest for parents and visitors in February/March next year. Hopefully both these plantings will, along with those by other Rotary clubs across Britain and Ireland, highlight the Rotary End Polio Now campaign and raise both awareness and funds to enable the goal of polio eradication to soon be achieved.