Click or tap play on the video above, or click 'read more' if you'd like to see the full transcript and get links to all of the goodies Ben shared in his message.

 

Video Transcript:

Hi everyone,

District Governor Ben Bauer here! October is a full month with Environmental Days of Service, World Polio Day and the monthly theme is Community Economic Development Month. Plenty to be excited about and all causes that each of us are connected to in different ways.

Rotary members have been at the center of the worldwide effort to eradicate polio for more than three decades. Rotary launched PolioPlus in 1985. Since then, cases have plummeted more than 99.9%, sparing more than 20 million people from paralysis. Rotary has helped immunize nearly 3 billion children against polio, but we're not done. We've gotten recent reminders that this disease is only a plane ride away. Each of us can play a role in finishing this important work.

We've officially introduced the Polio Plus Society. This is a new program to recognize your gifts and pledges to support Polio Plus at a minimum of $100 per year. Check out the link to the Polio Plus Society page at rotary6250.org to start your pledge. Don't forget that every dollar you give this year and next is turned into 3 dollars with the 2:1 match from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Lastly, if you can't give that amount, please know that no gift is too small and you can help in other ways like helping to plan a club event or fundraiser where funds raised go to Polio Plus.

To help us amplify our Polio Plus giving this year, we've got a special challenge for you!

Last year District 6250 Rotarians contributed $119,161 to Polio Plus. Your generosity is inspiring! Rotarians and clubs did this in lots of different ways and had lots of fun doing it. Our challenge is for you to help us achieve $130,000 in contributions to Polio Plus by March 20, 2023.  This is possible if Clubs and Rotarians renew their support at last year’s level and find an additional $200 per club. If we hit this goal, I'll dye my hair purple to help celebrate a job well done! Let's do this! See ya next time!

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