12:22pm Tuesday 9th February 2010
By Alexandra Womack
ROTARIANS in Chipping Sodbury are fighting back against a disease which is still killing children in the developing world.
Members of the town’s Rotary club are supporting international efforts to eradicate polio which still exists in several of the world’s poorest countries.
The club will is holding a series of fundraising events to raise awareness of the disease including a drop-in day at Chipping Sodbury Town Hall this Saturday, February 13 (10am-4pm). Members of the public will be able to have a pretend Polio immunisation, which includes having a finger dipped in purple paint, for a contribution of £1. Local schoolchildren will also be offered the chance to have a ‘purple pinkie’ during a tour next week.
The club is holding a swing band concert on Saturday, February 27 (7.30pm) and collections will be held outside Morrisons supermarket in Yate.
Barry Riley, president of Chipping Sodbury Rotary Club, said: "We are so close to stamping out polio and we hope these events will encourage more people to get behind the initiative.
"Rotary has been involved in this fight for 25 years and the world is so close to being free from polio for good, thanks to the joint hard work of organisations and governments. How fantastic for a town, individual, business or organisation to join the fight and be able to say, ‘I helped change the world’."
Polio is a crippling, and sometimes fatal disease in children. Immunisation is simple but many children in parts of Africa and Asia are still at risk because they do not have access to the vaccine.
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