Donating through the Ride to End Polio can turn $30,000 into $150,000 because of matching funds from The Rotary Foundation and The Gates Foundation. Use the QR Code or Click Here to donate through the Ride.
When Rotary established the Polio Plus initiative in 1985, there was no concerned global campaign to eradicate Polio.  That year there were 400,000 cases of Polio, which was endemic in 125 countries. 
 
What’s been accomplished in the last 37 years?
 
Rotary brought government and international health organizations together in 1989 to establish the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI)
3 billion children have been vaccinated
20,000,000 cases of paralysis have been prevented along with hundreds of thousands of deaths
We’re down to 25 cases year to date, 1 in Afghanistan and 24 in Pakistan…the only two remaining endemic countries. 
 
The GPEI has a plan in place to end Polio by 2026, but funding is a major issue. 
 
Rotary has been at this for 37 years and people don’t focus on Polio Plus as much as they could.  As a result, only one Rotarian in ten is actively supporting Polio Plus.  The funding shortfall jeopardizes the 2026 goal and potentially risks all of the gains.  As the recent case in New York shows, if Polio still exists somewhere it can be anywhere and everywhere tomorrow. 
 
Rotary—we—made a commitment to the children of the world that we’d wipe the scourge of Polio off the face of the earth.  In supporting Gary’s ride, you’re supporting that promise to the children of the world and helping Rotary finish something incredible. 
 
The District is matching Gary’s fundraising 1 for 1 up to $20,000 and the Gates Foundation is matching those donations 2 for 1.  That means for the first $20,000, any dollar you donate becomes $4.  Don’t miss this opportunity to make a difference!
 
You can also read more on the District Website (www.rotary.district5650.org).