With World Polio Day on October 24th, I’m proudly rooting for Rotary as we team ​up around the world to End Polio Now.

I had the honour of attending a Strike Out Polio event in July at PNC Park, home ​of the Pittsburgh Pirates Major League Baseball team. The Rotary Club of ​Delmont-Salem hosted the event, which raised $1.3 million for PolioPlus.

Later in the summer, I joined members of our Rotary family in supporting the ​Más Millas Menos Polio (More Miles Less Polio) bike ride. Felipe Meza Chávez and ​his team rode all the way from Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, to One Rotary Center in ​Evanston, Illinois, to raise money and awareness.

The ride took 12 days, and Felipe and his team collected more than $100,000 to ​support the fight against polio. It was a joy to greet them as they arrived in ​Evanston.

And I was thrilled to see Team End Polio raise global awareness around the 2024 ​Paris Olympics. This world-class roster of athletes, global leaders, and polio ​eradication supporters came together to advocate for a world where no child has ​to live in fear of being paralysed by polio. Some of the athletes on Team End ​Polio are polio survivors themselves, adding weight to their advocacy.

These are just a few examples of the many ways Rotary has teamed up recently ​to End Polio Now. It is vital that we continue to seek out and recruit teammates ​in polio eradication, especially after the challenges our eradication efforts have ​faced this year.

The Rotary world was heartbroken to learn about the tragic passing in August of ​Aidan O’Leary, director for polio eradication at the World Health Organization.

I knew Aidan and worked with him directly. He was a tireless advocate in the fight ​against polio and a kind, genuine man. We will remember him both for his ​advocacy and his warmth.

But where there is hardship, there is also hope. I feel hopeful whenever I ​consider the countless ways Rotary supports the fight every day to eradicate ​polio.

As people of action, we don’t have the luxury of giving in to despair, even in the ​face of tragedy. The best way to honour Aidan’s memory is by teaming up and ​reaching our goal to End Polio Now.

We made a promise to the children of the world and their families. It is ​incumbent upon us, together with our global partners, to end this threat once ​and for all.

There are so many ways we can team up to eradicate polio. You can donate to ​the End Polio Now campaign, join or initiate a PolioPlus Society in your club or ​district, or take inspiration from the fundraisers I mentioned above.

I encourage Rotary members around the world to continue to seek out new ​teammates, so that together, we end polio.

Join the team and help make polio history at endpolio.org