“Polio couldn't keep me down!”
Financial Advisor and polio survivor, Don Korbin resisted the habit of giving a financial seminar when he holds a microphone and instead delivered a heart-felt history of his bout with and recovery from polio. Korbin also lauded Rotary for stepping up to do something about the state of the world about which so many others merely complain. And he requested that we continue to “make a difference.”
Stricken with “this terrible disease” as a young child of three, in 1943, long before the development of a vaccine in 1950 —51, Korbin considers his recovery to be a “miracle.” Memories of being a young child confined to a hospital bed for over a year, in a small Jewish ghetto in New York, are still fresh in his mind. In the year of his ninth birthday, three out of nine children in his small village died. Korbin was completely paralyzed from his head to his toes. But he had no pain. And he survived
The polio virus produces chemicals that block synapses in the brain between neurons. Muscles, that are no longer triggered by the brain, atrophy. The local doctor visited daily, trying to lower his fever of 105 degrees and make him comfortable. Then, one day, he could wriggle his toes! And later he could turn his head! And eventually he could go out and play with the other kids. Korin even learned to punch a ball so hard that he knocked it out of the park.
Physical therapy has taught him not to compensate for weak muscles by using adjacent muscles groups. At Memorial Hospital, here in Santa Rosa, he has learned stretching exercises that help to tone down compensating muscles.
Korbin has been invited to come back and join the Sunrise Rotary. Whether or not he becomes a member, his story will continue to be an inspiration to all of us who strive to eradicate the 1% of the disease that still lingers.
Rotary Commitment to Protect Our Children, World-Wide
Historian and Web Master Dave Lorenzen brought Sunrisers up to date on Polio Plus — the Rotary International pledge to eradicate polio from the face of the earth.
Polio
Poliomyelitis (polio) is a paralyzing and potentially fatal disease that still threatens children in some parts of the world. The poliovirus invades the nervous system and can cause total paralysis in a matter of hours. It can strike at any age but mainly affects children under five. Polio is incurable, but completely vaccine-preventable.
PolioPlus
In 1985, Rotary launched its PolioPlus program, the first initiative to tackle global polio eradication through the mass vaccination of children. Rotary has contributed more than $1.5 billion and countless volunteer hours to immunize more than 2.5 billion children in 122 countries. In addition, Rotary’s advocacy efforts have played a role in decisions by donor governments to contribute more than $9 billion to the effort.
Global Polio Eradication Initiative
The Global Polio Eradication Initiative, formed in 1988, is a public-private partnership that includes Rotary, the World Health Organization, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, UNICEF, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and governments of the world. Rotary’s focus is advocacy, fundraising, volunteer recruitment and awareness-building.
Ensuring Success
Every dollar Rotary commits to polio eradication will be matched two-to-one by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation up to $35 million a year through 2018. These funds help to provide much-needed operational support, medical personnel, laboratory equipment, and educational materials for health workers and parents. Governments, corporations and private individuals all play a crucial role in funding.
Rotary in Action
More than one million Rotary members have donated their time and personal resources to end polio. Every year, hundreds of Rotary members work side-by-side with health workers to vaccinate children in polio-affected countries. Rotarians work with UNICEF and other partners to prepare and distribute mass communication tools to reach people in areas isolated by conflict, geography, or poverty. Rotary members also recruit fellow volunteers, assist with transporting the vaccine, and provide other logistical support.
‘This Close’ Campaign
Rotary has a growing roster of public figures and celebrities participating in its “This Close” public awareness campaign, including Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; actresses Kristen Bell and Archie Panjabi; WWE superstar John Cena; supermodel Isabeli Fontana; Nobel Peace Prize laureate Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu; action movie star Jackie Chan; boxing great Manny Pacquiao; pop star Psy; golf legend Jack Nicklaus; conservationist Jane Goodall; premier violinist Itzhak Perlman; Grammy Award winners A.R. Rahman; Angelique Kidjo and Ziggy Marley; and peace advocate Queen Noor of Jordan. These ambassadors help educate the public about polio through public service announcements, social media and public appearances.
Challenges
The polio cases represented by the remaining one percent are the most difficult to prevent, due to factors including geographical isolation, poor public infrastructure, armed conflict and cultural barriers. Until polio is eradicated, all countries remain at risk of outbreaks.
Polio Today
Today, there are only two countries that have never stopped transmission of the wild poliovirus: Afghanistan and Pakistan. Less than 370 polio cases were confirmed worldwide in 2014, which is a reduction of more than 99.9 percent since the 1980s, when the world saw about 1,000 cases per day.
