Mile of Coins

                                              100 Years of Rotary in Cheltenham

                                                      Mile of Coins Charity Event

To mark 100 years of service to Cheltenham and its citizens three Rotary Clubs intend to raise £25,000 by creating a Mile of Coins in Montpellier Gardens on Saturday, 28th May, 2022.

5280 foot-long, card strips, each bearing coins totalling £5, will be laid end- to-end by schoolchildren, members of local societies and organisations and the general public.

Every penny of the money raised will be used to complete the final stage of the eradication of the crippling and lethal disease of children, poliomyelitis, from our world.

Rotary International has been spearheading the fight against poliomyelitis since 1985 by paying for the vaccination of children across the globe. We have contributed more than £1.6 billion to the cost of vaccines and their administration to children. In 1985, 1000 children were being crippled each day by the poliovirus. By repeatedly vaccinating the millions of children at risk it has been possible to dramatically reduce that number. If we can maintain the vaccination programme for 2 or 3 more years we could make history by removing for ever the second worldwide scourge, after smallpox. Rotary is committed to funding the programme to the very end.

We will distribute the card strips to schools, organisations and the general public seeking their support in encouraging children, their families and others to attach coins. Alternatively, a donation of £5 will purchase a strip of pre-printed coins labelled with the donor’s name and organisation.

This venture is part of the centenary celebrations of Rotary in Cheltenham. And is to raise more funds to eradicate Polio from the planet.

The cards are now available from Cheltenham North members or contacting John Phillip, see below.

Some cards have sticky tape  attached. This means the coins shown , if collected over time, and once attached  to the board, will add up to £5.

These are most suitable to be allocated to children and grandchildren to collect and fill in. Schools if we have contact with them are an ideal way of promoting this venture.

The cards with no sticky tape attached are plain but still show the coins and simply can be sold for £5.

Both cards have a space for people to sign if they so wish. 

There will  also be be a supply of small flyers available to promote the event to family and friends.

At the previous event in September 2013 we recall that;

It took 8 rows of the cards in lengths of 220 yards to make up the mile. The path in Montpelier towards the Bandstand and the King's Statue at the end will be chalked up to show the distance covered. Groups of people can be invited to lay down there own contributions on the day. 

Further details about poliomyelitis and the Mile of Coins event can be found on https://www.mileofcoins.com.

We are most grateful for your interest in the project and ask that you PUT YOUR FOOT IN IT and BOOT OUT POLIO by contributing generously.

Many thanks.