Oldway garden volunteers join forces with Rotary friends to ensure war on polio has a purple patch

Oldway Mansion Paignton will be a vision of purple for Spring 2024 as crocuses start to bloom.
Rotary Paignton members have joined with the volunteers of The Oldway Gardeners Group to plant 4,0000 of crocus corms in support of End Polio Now, Rotary’s programme to wipe out polio all around the world.
These beautiful purple crocuses here in Paignton are just one group of the millions of corms planted across Great Britain and Ireland as part of Rotary’s Purple4Polio campaign 24th October.
When the warmer weather returns in Spring 2024 will wake the crocuses from their winter snooze, encouraging them to transform the gardens of Oldway in into a sea of vibrant purple.
Jo Jones, secretary of The Oldway Gardens Volunteer Group, is seen here receiving the Crocus corns from Maggie Douglas-Dunbar, President of Rotary Paignton. Jo Jones said: “We are extremely grateful to Rotary Paignton for choosing us to be part of Rotaries worldwide campaign to eradicate Pollio from the world. We will be busy in the gardens in the next couple of months to create a spectacular display for all to enjoy around each February”.
Maggi Douglas-Dunbar said: “Rotary Paignton is thrilled to be able to donate these bulbs to the hardworking team of volunteers who keep Oldway Gardens looking fantastic.”
Rotary’s ‘Purple4Polio’ campaign raising money for Rotary End Polio Now is so-called because purple is the colour of the dye placed on the little finger on the left hand of a child to show that they have been immunised against polio.
Rotary has helped immunise over 2.5 billion children against polio since 1985, reducing the number of countries where the disease is prevalent from 125 to just three.
The incidence of polio has plummeted from about 350,000 cases a year to just 156 cases in 2019.
Rotarians around the world have already raised 1.9 billion US dollars and given countless hours of volunteering administering vaccines, raising awareness and through advocacy work.
Thanks to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation every £1 we raise becomes £3 so your donations really can save lives.
Rotary’s ‘Purple4Polio’ campaign raising money for Rotary End Polio Now is so-called because purple is the colour of the dye placed on the little finger on the left hand of a child to show that they have been immunised against polio.
Rotary has helped immunise over 2.5 billion children against polio since 1985, reducing the number of countries where the disease is prevalent from 125 to just three.
The incidence of polio has plummeted from about 350,000 cases a year to just six cases of wild polio in 2023.
Children can now look ahead to lives full of possibilities instead of one filled with the pain causes by deformed limbs, paralysis, and other polio effects.
Whilst tremendous progress has been made, the final steps on any journey are often some of the hardest, with COVID19 having provided many obstacles which we had to overcome to make eradication happen. This can only be achieved by all working together and without full funding and political commitment, this paralysing disease could return to previously polio-free countries, putting children everywhere at risk, including the UK.
For further information contact the Rotary Club of Paignton via: Robbie Clymo, email address: rjclymo@outlook.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/rotary paignton
The Oldway Gardens Group: Jo Jones: oldwaygardens@gmail.com