Welcome to December and Rotary’s Disease Prevention and Treatment Month! We believe good health care is everyone’s right. Yet 400 million people in the world can’t afford or don’t have access to basic health care.
Disease results in misery, pain and poverty for millions of people worldwide. That’s why treating and preventing disease is so important to Rotarians. We lead efforts, both large and small - setting up temporary clinics, blood donation centers and training facilities in underserved communities struggling with outbreaks and health care access.
We design and build infrastructure that allows doctors, patients and governments to work together.
(This is a shot of me with Rotary President Shekhar Mehta at the Zone Institute in November.)
Rotarians combat diseases like polio, malaria, HIV/AIDS, Alzheimer’s, multiple sclerosis and diabetes. Prevention is essential as well, which is why we also focus on health education and bringing people routine hearing, vision and dental care.
Polio eradication is Rotary’s #1 goal and we are sooo close! To date, we have had only 4 new polio cases this year! Never before have we achieved this low number of cases in a year... so we are seeing the finish line of this disease. But we can’t let up our efforts! We need to continue all that we do to make total eradication happen. If you haven’t already, consider making a donation to PolioPlus right now and let Rotary fulfill the promise we made to the children of the world to eradicate this disease forever!
Here's another way to support PolioPlus: a custom-made District 5180 Rotaryopoly (think Monopoly) game will be available soon! It will have our District theme logo, the Rotary International theme logo and all club names on the properties! It’s perfect for giving to your favorite Rotarians as a great reminder of an outstanding year while supporting Polio Plus! To order your game, contact Tom Cicchini, District 5180 PolioPlus Chair, at (916) 773-6700 ext. 101, or email him: Tom.Cicchini@RaymondJames.com.
In the coming holiday season, I hope you take time to reflect upon the incredible work we do as individuals and Rotarians. It’s a time to reflect on our past successes and acknowledge how good it has been to have shared in giving back to the community by living out "Service Above Self."
This time of year also reaffirms the importance of the Four-Way Test, which I believe is summarized in the blessing, “peace on earth and goodwill to all.” Our commitment to serve others throughout the world is renewed as we join with our Rotary global family to affirm a pandemic is simply a ‘bump in the road’ that will never snuff out Service Above Self and the betterment of all.
May you all have a blessed, peaceful and enriching holiday season and new year!
Yours in Service,
Desirée Wilson
District 5180 Governor