Stopping polio in its tracks requires action. Since its inception in 1905, Rotary International has made it a primary mission to focus on humanitarian efforts, from promoting peace to providing clean drinking water to developing countries.
This year, as Rotary Club of St. Albert members prepare to attend the 2025 Rotary International Convention in Calgary from June 21-25, the local service club has organized End Polio Now, a fundraiser in keeping with its 35-year mission to eradicate polio.
The club has designed and ordered what is lovingly called the Polio Moose. The innocent looking tan stuffie, garbed in a red shirt and checkered antlers, is selling for $50. All proceeds go directly to the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI).
Sandra Fenton, one of the fundraising committee members, first came up with the idea two years ago after travelling to a Rotary International Convention in Australia. As part of its polio eradication project, the Australian contingent was selling children’s koala stuffies, and they were rapidly snapped up by international visitors as a choice souvenir.
“Last year, I went to Singapore and for the End Polio Now campaign they had a lion. This year in Calgary, we thought we’d follow up with a Canadian animal,” said Fenton.
Canada’s first polio case surfaced in 1910 when a young girl died. By 1937 almost 4,000 cases were reported with 120 deaths. Polio is developed by a virus that affects nerves in the spine or brain. In the most severe cases, polio leads to life-long paralysis of limbs. It can also lead to trouble breathing and sometimes death.
By using the Salk vaccine in 1955 and the Sabin oral vaccine in 1962, Canada was certified polio free by 1994. While Canada is free of this debilitating disease, GPEI records current cases. Pakistan, Angola, Chad, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Niger, Somalia and Yemen all treated cases this year.
Fenton said a club member whose father had contracted polio spoke to members about the long-term effects.
“It really resonated with us, especially the impact of how people are living today. That’s why Rotary is so committed to eradicating polio and assisting countries that don’t have the same access to funding as we do,” she said.
St. Albert Rotary needed to acquire a special licence from Rotary International to sell the Rotary Polio Moose,. There was a serious vetting process, where every item required approval.
The local Rotarians went through a strategic design process looking at several styles with the assistance of member Jim Whitesell, the club photographer. The club ordered 5,370 stuffies and will sell to the 16,000 delegates attending the Calgary conference.
Members of the public sympathetic to polio eradication, can also pre-order the Polio Moose for $50 CAD. At the convention, the Polio Moose will sell for $50 US ($72.50 CAD). (All business at the convention is conducted in American currency.) To pre-order, visit stalbertrotaryclub.com.
