Sutherland Rotarian's pet helps promote polio fundraising message

An East Sutherland Rotarian has enlisted her pet to help broadcast an important fundraising message.

Sarah Warren, secretary of East Sutherland Rotary Club, bought her dog Monty a coat as a Christmas present.

And on it she had printed: "I’m walking to raise money to eradicate Polio. East Sutherland Rotary Club.”

Now wherever Monty goes, people are reminded of the drive by the local club and its parent body to rid the world of polio.

The organisation has been working for 35 years towards that aim and has had considerable success, reducing polio cases by 99.8 per cent since an initial project to vaccinate children in the Philippines. Today polio remains endemic only in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

One of the club's fundraisers is an annual February swimarathon, but the 2021 event has had to be cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic. Instead the club is encouraging people to undertake individual sponsored swims - if the pool is open - or alternatively sponsored walks or jogs.

Sponsor forms can be downloaded from the East Sutherland Rotary web site at www.sutherland.rotary1010.org

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