TT PARADE LAP TO HELP ERADICATE POLIO
Organised by The Rotary Club of Douglas
Saturday 27th February 2010
The event starts with everyone gathering at 10.00am for a start of 1030am at the Grandstand.
£5 charitable donation from bikers taking part
Hot refreshments kindly supplied by Mannvend
Every biker will receive a free commemorative T-Shirt kindly supplied by Manx Gas and a free raffle ticket
For details contact Ian Lewandowskyj Douglas Rotary on 481669 or email ian.lewandowskyj@dlge.gov.im .
Commenting on the Club's Polio Eradication drive on 27th February, Leslie Guthrie - President of Douglas Rotary Club said: "This event is a unique opportunity for anyone with a love for two wheels to join in and say with pride 'I helped towards the eradication of a crippling and life threatening disease'. We would love to set a new record for the largest number of Manx riders to gather on the course at one time outside of TT and make this a truly memorable day."
He continued: "Rotary is 'leading the charge' to wipe out this horrific disease in the last four countries and to ensure it never comes back either there or, indeed, here in the UK. Rotary is the volunteer arm of a world-wide partnership dedicated to eradicating polio, working with the World Health Organisation (WHO), United Nations Children's' Fund (UNICEF), the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), national governments around the world and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The Bill and Melinda Gates foundation has been extraordinarily generous in agreeing to match whatever Rotary raises globally to help accelerate the eradication of this disease."
Leslie Guthrie added: "The battle against polio has been waged on many fronts for decades… and never has the final victory against it been so close as it is now. It is a victory which can be won with just two tiny drops of vaccine, an army of dedicated volunteers and modern technology. We hope that the people of the Isle of Man will come out and support us on 27th February so, together, we can end polio NOW."
Polio is a highly contagious disease, carried only by the human body and easily passed from person to person. There is no known cure. Most commonly affected are children under 5 years of age, with flu-like symptoms as the first signs of onset. Those who survive polio are usually paralysed.