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To support the Rotary Foundation of Rotary International in their drive to eradicate polio from the face of the earth, two sixth grade teams at North Pocono Middle School (NPMS) recently held a “Purple Pinky Day.”
The name comes from the worldwide practice of coloring a child’s pinkie fingernail with an indelible purple marker when the child receives the immunization.
The purple pinkie enables workers to both make sure that all children are inoculated, and to prevent a child from receiving extra doses. Rotarians call this eradication effort “PolioPlus.”
Mrs. Shucy’s Emerald Team and Mrs. Powers’ Diamond Team devised a program to allow students to contribute their pocket change and other money to PolioPlus, in return for getting their own “Purple Pinky” to show their friends.
The day was a great success. The Emeralds, who met the challenge head-on and raised $205, were followed closely behind by the diamonds with $151.50.
The total sixth grade contribution was a very generous $356.50.
Mrs. Carol Hemphill, a teacher at NPMS and the President of NP Rotary Club, accepted the donation on behalf of the Rotary Foundation and PolioPlus.
In exchange for this donation, Hemphill and her Club where able to obtain very nice Certificates of Appreciation from the Rotary Foundation, signed by the Chairman of the Board of Trustees.
The certificates were presented by Mr. Bryan McGraw, NP School District Superintendent, and Mr. Edward Bugno, NPMS Principal, to the two teachers for their teams.
It has been a long time since we have had many cases of polio (poliomyelitis) in America, but it still strikes many children who live in Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
Polio can cause paralysis, and sometimes, death. Such paralysis is almost always irreversible. In the most serious cases, polio attacks the motor neurons of the brain stem, causing severe breathing difficulty.
Historically, polio has been the world’s greatest cause of disability. Since there is no cure for polio, the best protection is prevention. For as little as $0.60 worth of vaccine, a child can be protected from this crippling disease for life.
In 1985, there were 350,000 polio cases in 125 countries. Also in 1985, Rotary International took up the challenge to eradicate polio from the entire world.
Working with its Global Polio Eradication initiative partners, the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF, the Rotary Foundation has used Rotary’s vast network of 1.2 million members in over 200 countries to solicit contributions and provide volunteer time and networking expertise to the eradication effort.
To support the Rotary Foundation of Rotary International in their drive to eradicate polio from the face of the earth, two sixth grade teams at North Pocono Middle School (NPMS) recently held a “Purple Pinky Day.”
The name comes from the worldwide practice of coloring a child’s pinkie fingernail with an indelible purple marker when the child receives the immunization.
The purple pinkie enables workers to both make sure that all children are inoculated, and to prevent a child from receiving extra doses. Rotarians call this eradication effort “PolioPlus.”
Mrs. Shucy’s Emerald Team and Mrs. Powers’ Diamond Team devised a program to allow students to contribute their pocket change and other money to PolioPlus, in return for getting their own “Purple Pinky” to show their friends.
The day was a great success. The Emeralds, who met the challenge head-on and raised $205, were followed closely behind by the diamonds with $151.50.
The total sixth grade contribution was a very generous $356.50.
Mrs. Carol Hemphill, a teacher at NPMS and the President of NP Rotary Club, accepted the donation on behalf of the Rotary Foundation and PolioPlus.
In exchange for this donation, Hemphill and her Club where able to obtain very nice Certificates of Appreciation from the Rotary Foundation, signed by the Chairman of the Board of Trustees.
The certificates were presented by Mr. Bryan McGraw, NP School District Superintendent, and Mr. Edward Bugno, NPMS Principal, to the two teachers for their teams.
It has been a long time since we have had many cases of polio (poliomyelitis) in America, but it still strikes many children who live in Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
Polio can cause paralysis, and sometimes, death. Such paralysis is almost always irreversible. In the most serious cases, polio attacks the motor neurons of the brain stem, causing severe breathing difficulty.
Historically, polio has been the world’s greatest cause of disability. Since there is no cure for polio, the best protection is prevention. For as little as $0.60 worth of vaccine, a child can be protected from this crippling disease for life.
In 1985, there were 350,000 polio cases in 125 countries. Also in 1985, Rotary International took up the challenge to eradicate polio from the entire world.
Working with its Global Polio Eradication initiative partners, the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF, the Rotary Foundation has used Rotary’s vast network of 1.2 million members in over 200 countries to solicit contributions and provide volunteer time and networking expertise to the eradication effort.
Augmented by generous donations from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Rotary’s financial contributions are expected to reach nearly $1.2 billion by the time the world is certified polio-free.
All this money has resulted in significant progress. Over 2 billion children have been vaccinated worldwide. The wild poliovirus has been eliminated from all but four countries, and is endemic in only India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria.
In the affected areas of those countries, immunization efforts have been hampered by political, religious and war obstacles.
However, headway is being made, eradication strategies are being energized and modernized, and there is renewed hope that we are on the verge of finishing this project.
Anyone desiring further information about this effort, wanting to make a contribution to PolioPlus, or who would like to join Rotary, please contact NP Rotary at PO Box 731, Moscow PA 18444 or at bravo6bull@aol.com.
