Rotary Rideout

What is Rotary?

Rotary International is the world's first service club organisation, formed over 100 years ago. Its more than 1.2 million members volunteer their time and talent to further the Rotary motto, Service Above Self.

There are over 32,000 Rotary clubs in more than 200 countries and geographical areas. Clubs are non-political, nonreligious, and open to all cultures, races, and creeds. As signified by the motto Service Above Self, Rotary's main objective is service -- in the community, in the workplace, and throughout the world.

Rotary Foundation Charity

The mission of The Rotary Foundation is to enable Rotarians to advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through the improvement of health, the support of education, and the alleviation of poverty. The Foundation is a not-for-profit corporation supported solely by voluntary contributions from Rotarians and friends of the Foundation who share its vision of a better world.

Polio Plus

Decades ago, polio outbreaks were a constant threat around the world. After the introduction of polio vaccines by Jonas Salk and Albert Sabin and a steadfast immunization effort, these outbreaks became part of history in most of the world. Rotary has been very heavily involved and raised in excess of $650 million worldwide, polio has as a result ceased to be endemic in most parts of the world.

• In the 1980s, 1,000 children were infected by the disease every day in 125 countries. Today, polio cases have declined by 99 percent, with fewer than two thousand cases reported in 2006.
• Two billion children have been immunized, five million have been spared disability, and over 250,000 deaths from polio have been prevented.