Rotary Club of Glenview Sunrise program speaker Denny Hebson Jr. Thursday, June 9, 2011

The Rotary Club of Glenview Sunrise program speaker for Thursday,
June 9, 2011 will be Denny Hebson Jr.  Mr. Hebson will discuss the advertising campaign conducted by Rotary to promote Rotary International’s world-wide initiative to eradicate polio.  Mr. Hebson, a Glenview resident, is the Creative Director for Schager Condon Carter in Chicago.

Since 1985, more than two billion children have received the
oral polio vaccine.  Five million children destined to be polio victims are walking today and enjoy a better life because of global immunization.  Reported polio cased have dropped 99.8%-from 350,000 per year in 1988 to fewer than 2,000 a year today and only four countries-Afghanistan, Pakistan, Nigeria, and India now remain endemic.  Due to the efforts of Rotary and its global partners, the world is on the threshold of eradication of the wild poliovirus. 

Although tremendous progress has been made, the world is not
yet polio free.  The poliovirus knows no borders and can spread easily from an endemic country into polio-free areas.  As long as one case of polio remains in the world, no child is safe from this deadly disease.  The greatest challenge in the battle against polio today is financial. Despite the enormous resources already committed, more money is urgently needed to reach the children in the four remaining
polio-endemic countries.  Recognizing Rotary’s resolve to eradicate polio and its extensive volunteer network, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation awarded Rotary a US$100 million grant.  In return, Rotary is committed to matching the $100 million over a three year period which began in January of 2008.

There is now an unprecedented opportunity to finish the job
and eradicate polio.  Eradicating polio means that no child ever again will be paralyzed by or die from the wild poliovirus.  In 1985, Rotary launched the Polio Plus program whose goal was to immunize the world’s children against polio.  A little more than 20 years later, thanks to the efforts of Rotary and its spearheading partners-the World Health Organization, UNICEF, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the world is nearly polio free.  Thanks to the generous support of Rotarians worldwide, Rotary has been able to contribute more than US$700 million to keep alive the dream of a polio-free world.    

The Rotary Club of Glenview Sunrise is affiliated with
Rotary International.  The club has weekly meetings on Thursday morning starting at 7am and concluding at 8:15am at the Glenview Park Golf Club Café.  The Rotary Club of Glenview Sunrise invites members of the community interested in community service to attend this program and learn about Rotary’s Polio eradication program and Rotary membership.  Admission fee for the program and breakfast buffet is $12.  If you would like to attend this meeting,
please RSVP to Richard Hill at 847-562-0199. Visit the club website at www.rotaryglenviewsunrise.org