I regret to inform you that the Rotary Club of Vancouver's annual Bike-A-Thon has been CANCELLED for this year.
Concerns about the spread of the CoronaVirus have prompted this action and the safety and health of our riders, their families and the many volunteers who make this event a success are our primary concerns.
However, the need to support the Deaf and Hard of Hearing in BC continues to be a priority for our Club and we will be conducting an online fundraising event through social media in hopes that the many donors who have sponsored our riders in the past will be willing to make a donation to our Hearing Foundation.
By now, Canadians are well aware they should be practicing social distancing amid the new Coronavirus pandemic.
And there’s math behind the idea that cancelling plans, working from home and limiting interaction with others will eventually, ideally, help end the pandemic.
One graphic (below), created by University of California San Diego assistant professor Robert A.J. Signer and art director Gary Warshaw, shows how it works.
Signer explained to Global News that the calculations were based on initial research from officials around the world.
“There is a universal logic to this,” he said, noting that the exact numbers may vary from country to country, especially as research is done.
“Initial studies have suggested that [without proper social distancing] one person infected with coronavirus can transmit the virus to approximately 2.5 people,” Signer explained.
Signer added that initial research also shows those who tested positive for COVID-19, the disease caused by the new coronavirus, were asymptomatic for an average of five days.
“The next assumption we made is that after five days, a person will begin experiencing symptoms, will quarantine [themselves] and no longer infect others,” he said.
If one person transmits the infection to an average of 2.5 people [during the 5 days they were asymptomatic], and those 2.5 people each transmit to another 2.5 people and so on, within 30 days, 406 people would be infected.
If people limited their social interaction by 50 per cent — an infected person would only transmit the virus to 1.25 people. In 30 days, 15 people would be infected.
Then, it goes on to do the same calculations, assuming the infected individual limited social interaction by 75 per cent. That’s when the “transmission chain” would ideally end, Signer explained.
Of course you cannot infect 1/2 or .625 of a person, but you get the gist. So, when you are feeling squirrelly stuck at home and are starting to think that a trip to Superstore would be a source of entertainment, think again. Do you absolutely need to go out amongst other people right now or can you do without that extra packet of chips?
News of Kayo Otake (c/o Verona & Vancouver Rotary friends):
Kayo finished packing up her house and flew to Tokyo on March 28. Although self-isolation on arrival for 14 days is required, she has been authorized to visit the hospital on March 30 to begin her last two rounds of chemo. She would have preferred to have them in Vancouver, but received a message from her oncologist in Tokyo saying that Japan is at the leading edge of treatment for the type of cancer she has, and the chemo she had been receiving was available only in Japan. She was advised to return immediately to resume treatment.
Kayo enjoyed seeing all her RC Vancouver colleagues at our meeting on March 3rd and would have loved to see more of club members. However, COVID 19 intervened. Just before the COVID shut down all social get togethers, ISC members who had accompanied her on the amazing Cherry Blossom visit to Japan in 2018, and their respective spouses, had dinner with her. We toasted her courage and success of enduring the treatment and offered best wishes and prayers for her complete defeat of this disease.
Kayo is looking forward to seeing an RC Vancouver delegation at the RCTSS 50th Anniversary Celebration in April, 2021. Recall that an RC TSS delegation of 13 members and spouses participated in RCV’s 100th Anniversary in 2013.
Friendship Exchange is an international exchange program for Rotary members and friends that allows participants to take turns hosting one another in their homes and clubs. Participants may travel as individuals, couples, families, or groups, and may be Rotary members or not.
During this time of social distancing and isolation, it's important to have things to look forward to. Connecting with people in other parts of the world and planning trips is a wonderful thing to do to lift spirits and provide hope.
Rotarians on a Friendship Exchange genuinely experience another culture, broaden their international understanding, foster goodwill, explore their professions in a different context, build long lasting friendships and establish a foundation for peace. All guided by friends in Rotary, Exchange participants take turns hosting and visiting one another, forging friendships that last a lifetime.
ROTARY CLUBS AROUND THE GLOBE STEPPING UP TO HELP THOSE IN NEED DURING THESE UNCERTAIN TIMES
So many clubs, including our own, are taking steps to direct, or redirect if necessary, funds and resources to help those in most need in their communities & stay connected.
An example:
RC of Toronto are working on a number of fronts.
They hosted a virtual social, Martini & Mocktail Night. This was a black tie event (at least from the waist up).
They partnered with Robin Hood Army Canada to collect and distribute food & hygiene products for shelters.
Our own club has selected the Vancouver Sun Childrens Fund Society Adopt a School Program. Specifically to support Brittania Secondary School food security program.
Way to go Rotarians!
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