Friday lunch bunch meetings be on the following dates below, meeting at Liberty Public House at 12pm, please let Cliff McFerren know if you're coming so that food may be ordered.
April 5th
April 12th
April 19th
April 26th
Thursday evening:
April 11th will have a program from the University of Iowa that evening. Please join us at the West Liberty Golf and Country Club for social 5:30-6, program at 6-7pm. Meal will be served. Also following program there will be a board meeting. Any questions please contact president Ken Brooks.
FAIR TIME 2024-2025.....Hot off the Press with updates:
The Fair Stand committee met and decided that we can now handle the stand by ourselves this year without the assistance of the Iowa City Noon Club! We appreciate our partnership with the Iowa City Noon club and all that they did to help us out over these last few years.
Framework for this year's stand will be two 4 hours shifts of 4 to 5 Rotarians / Interact Students each shift. This will help us meet the fair board's requirement for longer hours.
In addition, we are only going to use Stand 1 (original building) this year providing a streamlined menu of our most popular items:
Turkey Legs
Turkey Tenderloins
Chips (2 kinds)
Yotty Bars (the only ice cream selection)
Pepsi, Dt. Pepsi, Mt. Dew, Dt Mt. Dew, and Bottled Water
How are we going to fit all of this into Stand 1? Glad you asked. We met with Dillon Brooke to look at remodeling Stand 1 for our 100th anniversary. This year we would remodel stand 1 and then next year look at connecting it to Stand 2. Pending board approval, we would:
remove the wall between the front and back of stand 1 to open it up
fully insulate and panel the interior,
ad 2 new sliding windows in the front to replace the existing service window,
new lighting on the inside as well as outside
Move the water heater inside for permanent hook up
Install a split unit ac/heater unit for year round climate control for future use (such as the chicken bar-b-que in the fall).
And lastly, I (Clifford) would like to do all of this remodeling in honor of past Rotarian Tom Brooke and our 100th anniversary. I would like to have a dedication ceremony on the Tuesday night before the fair opens (which would be our traditional work night) and celebrate in a fashion Tom would have enjoyed.
All of this is in the planning stages and prone to change so please let us know your thoughts.
If you would like to help or contribute in some way, please reach out to me (Clifford) or Gretchen.
Contact info:
ccmcferren@gmail.com 319-430-6125
gretchen.nollman@gmail.com 319-541-1462
100 Year Project update:
As of last Meeting December 8th, 2023 - Ken Brooks has an update of the following for the 100 year project:
1 year away on dec 21,2024 and new logo to kick it off! There will be time to host several committee events for publicizing rotary and fundraising for rotary. So far we have Fair activities along with the Hot Cocoa at WL Holiday Open House
The Ball Drop fundraiser is to be coordinated with when the Football Field and Athletic Complex is opening up next fall. Ask Ken and Jacob for more details or any questions you have.
Also there will be a Spring Fundraiser towards the 100 year which is a Murder Mystery Progressive Dinner that Allie Paarsmith is heading up. Anyone wanting help more with the Spring Fundraiser please get with Allie Paarsmith.
Other Ideas discussed in the coming months.....
Movie theatre for family night or movie nights at Ron de voo
Musicians sponsored with Ron de voo summer of arts group with lph
Free swimming at the pool for summer
Christmas ball in December - celebration, invite entire community, 1920’s theme, community center or school due to having a video with members to be shown
100 banner on poles work with chamber potentially
100 year shirts
Again, any questions please contact Ken Brooks and Jacob Burroughs.
April Chamber Chat
Hello Chamber Members and Friends,
Attachedyou will find our Chamber Chat for April. We are looking forward to warmer weather, and our summer events! Follow our Facebook for updates on events and information!
Cassie
Also don't forget the Friends of the Library Book and Bake Sale on Saturday, April 20th from 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM at the West Liberty Public Library.
Welcome to Week TWO of RI’s Month of Water, Sanitation & Hygiene.
Happy Celebration to ALL WOMEN in Rotary and around the World!
In recognition of International Women’s Day, set aside for women around the world to advocate for their rights, and in tune with TRF’s focus on WASH, this week’s FM is dedicated to the recipient of the 2024 Rotary International Sylvia Whitlock Leadership Award, Manjoo Phadke. In a RI online report by Etelka Lehoczky, the 20-year long member of the Rotary Club of Pune Deccan, Gymkhana Maharashtra, India, has pursued numerous initiatives to support women’s health, including organizing clinics to offer medical checkups and mammograms and leading campaigns to promote menstrual hygiene. Praised for her initiative and dedication, Rotarian Phadke is responsible for securing a Rotary Foundation Grant of $800,000 USD to pay for vaccinations for which she aggressively negotiated directly with the vaccine suppliers, ultimately saving two-thirds off the final cost per vaccine. This phenomenal Rotarian has improved the lifestyle of Indian girls and women through various programs she initiated including, Project Asmita, her district’s signature initiative which uses specially made videos and booklets to educate girls in life skills such as financial, digital, and legal literacy, as well as self-defense, nutrition, and menstrual health. The project has distributed free vitamins and sanitary pads to more than 100,000 girls and women.
Another initiative is SkillArbor, a vocational institute for lower-income students. The institute takes a “learn while you earn” approach, connecting participants with employers on their first day in the program. As an entrepreneur herself, Phadke says, she has a special interest in helping women who want to run their own businesses. Her district recruited about 1,000 girls for a driver’s education program that enabled the participants to go into business as delivery drivers. “We thought that if girls can be taught to drive, they can be employed as delivery girls for supply chain companies,” she says. “We also gave them some vans to ferry children to school.” Phadke has conducted free workshops for women entrepreneurs and advises women on legal matters, financial issues and conflict resolution.
“Unfortunately, in India, women have this tendency of neglecting themselves,…For example, if there is one liter of milk, women think it should be given to the men or the boys. We have to make them understand that if the woman of the house is healthy, the entire house can be healthy.” (Manjoo Phadke, 2024 RI Sylvia Whitlock Leadership Award Recipient).
It’s Week THREE of RI’s Month of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH).
The lack of access to clean water, sanitation facilities, and hygiene resources is one of the world’s biggest health problems—and one of the hardest to solve. According to a UN statistic:
About 663 million people do not use an improved drinking water source, most of whom are poor and in rural areas.
2.4 billion people live in water-stressed countries
Almost 950 million people still practice open defecation.
81% of species dependent on inland wetlands have declined since 1970
At least 3000 children die every day from diarrheal diseases—an avoidable consequence of poor water, sanitation and hygiene.
Over the past several years, Rotary has shifted its focus to also emphasize education, collaboration, and sustainability in WASH. With Rotary Foundation Global Grants, a dedicated Rotarian Action Group, and a partnership with the US Agency for International Development (USAID), Rotary’s water, sanitation, and hygiene programs are achieving greater, longer-lasting change.
When people have access to clean water and safe sanitation:
waterborne diseases decrease
children stay healthier and attend school more regularly
mothers can spend less time carrying water and more time helping their families.
Week FOUR of RI’s Month of Water, Sanitation & Hygiene (WASH).
Nobody takes water for granted in Zimbabwe, least of all the residents of Musekiwa and Mushaki. Located about 160 kilometers (99 miles) from the capital of Harare, the two villages have been drastically affected by the country’s water shortage. Until recently, many residents walked five kilometers (three miles) or more to find water every day. “They were getting some water from open wells, some from rivers,” says Trymore Tafadzwa Kabanda, a counselor for Mushaki. That changed when two Rotary clubs thousands of miles apart decided to collaborate on a grant-funded project. Members of the Rotary Club of Saint Helena, California, USA, learned about the villages’ situation in 2020 from a guest speaker whose wife had grown up in the area. They found out about the devastating effects climate change has had on rainfall in rural Zimbabwe, where more than 90% of households depend on agriculture for their main livelihood. “They had a horrendous water problem,” says John Muhlner, a past president of the Saint Helena club. “Women, for the most part, were walking miles every day to bring water back to their homes. Often, they would go and wouldn’t find water, or maybe the water they found would be contaminated.”
The Saint Helena Rotarians contacted the Rotary Club of Harare CBD, Harare, Zimbabwe, which conducted a community assessment. After that, the clubs raised funds and applied for a Rotary Foundation Global Grant. The US$82,000 project plan was to dig two wells, install solar-powered pumps and a water piping system, train residents to maintain the equipment, and conduct an educational campaign about the importance of hygiene….“Water touches on all of Rotary’s areas of focus,” says Mary Beth Growney Selene, chair of the Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene Rotary Action Group. “Children are not being pulled away from school to go fetch water in a local river. Parents don’t have to spend time fetching water, so they can be more productive economically. People aren’t as susceptible to waterborne diseases. ‘It all starts with water,’ is what we say.” That was certainly the case in Mushaki and Musekiwa. “Now, most of the villagers don’t have to go more than a few meters to fetch water,” Kabanda says. “Also, diseases like cholera are prevented.”
It’s Week ONE of RI’s Month of Maternal and Child Health...and that’s not April Fool!
An estimated 5.9 million children under the age of five die each year because of malnutrition, inadequate health care, and poor sanitation — all of which can be prevented. Rotary provides education, immunizations, birth kits, and mobile health clinics. Women are taught how to prevent mother-to-infant HIV transmission, how to breast-feed, and how to protect themselves and their children from disease.
More than $102 million (USD) has been spent by TRF on Global Grants targeting Maternal and Child Health
Haiti has the highest maternal and infant mortality rate of any country in the western hemisphere. Rotary provided a fully equipped medical Jeep to volunteers and midwives to reach mothers and children in remote areas.
Cancer screening: Rotarians provided a mobile cancer screening unit and awareness trainings around Chennai, India, where there is a high mortality rate of women with breast and cervical cancer due to late diagnosis.
Preventing injuries and deaths: Rotary members launched a $3 million, five-year pilot to save lives of mothers and children during home deliveries in Nigeria. Since 2005, they’ve also repaired 1,500 obstetric fistulas — 500 more than their initial goal — restoring dignity and hope to vulnerable mothers.
“If mothers are empowered and healthy, so are their families, leading to an alleviation of poverty and hunger.” Robert Zinser, co-founder of the Rotarian Action Group for Population and Development and retired president for Asia at chemical giant BASF
Olabisi Gwamna, PhD
Mount Pleasant Rotary
Editor, Foundation Minute
Updates for Polio are from March 9th, March 16th, March 23rd, and March 30th.
Terry's Polio Eradication Update
For the week ending 3/09/24
Dear Polio Eradication Warriors,
No new Wild Polio cases reported this week. We are now 19 weeks since the Onset of Paralysis of the most recent reported Wild Polio Case - in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. WHO would like to extend its gratitude to the Board of Trustees of the Rotary Foundation for the approval of new grants totaling US$ 25.5 million at its January 2024 meeting, in support of polio campaign operations in Afghanistan and Pakistan, technical assistance in Nigeria and global outbreak response.
Tomorrow the 8th of March is International Women’s Day and to mark the occasion, you are invited to attend a webinar about the powerful impact of women in the global effort to eradicate polio. During the webinar, women working on the frontlines in Afghanistan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria and Pakistan will share the experiences and challenges they face in the fight against polio. More information and registration details are available here.
Save the Date: World Immunization Week, 24-30 April
Total Wild Polio cases
Year-to-date 2024
Total
2023
Total
2022
Total
2021
Total
2020
Globally
0
12
30
6
140
- in endemic countries:
0
12
22
5
140
- in post-endemic countries:
0
0
8
1
0
2024 Wild Polio Case Total - 0
2024 Circulating Variant Polio Case Total - 3 Nigeria 3
2023 Wild Polio Case Total 12 - Afghanistan 6, Pakistan 6
Quote of the Day - "At every moment, we always have a choice, even if it feels as if we don't. Sometimes that choice may simply be to think a more positive thought." Tina Turner
The Final Two Polio Endemic Countries:
Pakistan No new Wild Polio cases reported this week. No Wild Polio cases reported in 2024. Six Wild Polio Cases reported in 2023. Twenty Wild Polio cases reported in 2022. The most recent case had an onset of paralysis on 10/24/23. Three WPV1 Samples and no cVDPV2 Positive Environmental Samples were reported this week in Pakistan.
Afghanistan No new Wild Polio cases reported this week. No Wild Polio cases reported in 2024. Six Wild Polio Cases reported in 2023, Two Wild Polio Cases reported in 2022. The most recent case had an onset of paralysis on 9/4/23. No WPV1 Samples and no cVDPV2 Positive Environmental Samples were reported this week in Afghanistan.
For the week ending 3/16/24
Dear Polio Eradication Warriors,
No new Wild Polio cases reported this week. We are now 20 weeks since the Onset of Paralysis of the most recent reported Wild Polio Case - in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan.
Paul Alexander - I'm sad to report that Paul Alexander, a Polio Survivor who lived for over 70 years in an iron lung in the Dallas, Texas, USA area, passed away on 3/11/24. Paul was an amazing person who was an attorney and lived life to the fullest for his 78 years. If you get a chance, Google Paul Alexander at You Tube and see one of his videos where he talks about his life in an iron lung.
Save the Date: World Immunization Week, 24-30 April
Total Wild Polio cases
Year-to-date 2024
Total
2023
Total
2022
Total
2021
Total
2020
Globally
0
12
30
6
140
- in endemic countries:
0
12
22
5
140
- in post-endemic countries:
0
0
8
1
0
2024 Wild Polio Case Total - 0
2024 Circulating Variant Polio Case Total - 4 Nigeria 4
2023 Wild Polio Case Total 12 - Afghanistan 6, Pakistan 6
2022 Circulating Variant Polio Cases – 914 in 26 Countries
2023 Circulating Variant Polio Case Total - 522 Benin - 3, Burkina Faso - 2, Burundi - 1, Central African Republic - 14, Chad - 55, Cote d' Ivoire - 6, DR Congo - 223, Guinea - 47, Indonesia - 6, Israel - 1, Kenya - 8, Madagascar - 24, Mali - 16, Mauritania - 1, Mozambique - 5,Niger - 2, Nigeria - 87, Somalia - 8, South Sudan - 2, Tanzania - 3, Yemen - 7, Zambia - 1, Zimbabwe - 1.
New Polio Cases & Samples reported this week -
Angola: one cVDPV2-positive environmental sample
Côte d’Ivoire: four cVDPV2-positive environmental samples
Mali: one cVDPV2 case (2023)
Nigeria: one cVDPV2 case (2024)
Sierra Leone: one cVDPV2-positive environmental sample
Yemen: three cVDPV2 cases (2023)
Quote of the Day - "When you learn, teach. When you get, give." Maya Angelou
The Final Two Polio Endemic Countries:
Pakistan No new Wild Polio cases reported this week. No Wild Polio cases reported in 2024. Six Wild Polio Cases reported in 2023. Twenty Wild Polio cases reported in 2022. The most recent case had an onset of paralysis on 10/24/23. No WPV1 Samples and no cVDPV2 Positive Environmental Samples were reported this week in Pakistan.
Afghanistan No new Wild Polio cases reported this week. No Wild Polio cases reported in 2024. Six Wild Polio Cases reported in 2023, Two Wild Polio Cases reported in 2022. The most recent case had an onset of paralysis on 9/4/23. No WPV1 Samples and no cVDPV2 Positive Environmental Samples were reported this week in Afghanistan.
For the week ending 3/23/24
Dear Polio Eradication Warriors,
Two new Wild Polio cases reported this week. We are now 3 weeks since the Onset of Paralysis of the most recent reported Wild Polio Case.
Two Wild Poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) cases were reported from Dera Bugti and Chaman districts of Balochistan, Pakistan. The cases had onset of paralysis on 22 February 2024 and 29 February 2024. The virus isolated from the cases are linked to the YB3A cluster that was detected in environmental samples in Quetta and Chaman in 2023. Outbreak response to the detected cases in Balochistan and recent environmental detections from other districts are ongoing with a polio vaccination campaign taking place from 25-28 March in polio-affected districts in Balochistan, Sindh and Punjab. Eradication efforts, particularly surveillance in the endemic areas where no cases linked to YB3C cluster have been reported since September 2023, continue to be intensified, particularly as the country is currently in the ‘low transmission season’ for poliovirus.
The Rotary E-Club of North Texas has created a memorial fund to honor our late Honorary Rotarian Member Paul Alexander, a man in the iron lung whose funeral was earlier this week. Please join our mission to help Rotary reach every child with the polio vaccine. Every donation goes directly to the Rotary Foundation's, End Polio Now effort.
Save the Date - World Immunization Week - April 24-30
Don't Miss It - Read the Polio Mapping Goes High Tech article on pages 12-14 in the March Rotary Magazine
"Closing In on Zero"Polio Eradication Update - Presented at the House of Commons Rotary International President Gordon McInally, who was attending Commonwealth Week, delivered a compelling update on the global effort to eradicate polio at a meeting held in the House of Commons on Wednesday evening. Addressing a diverse audience comprising High Commissioners, diplomats from Commonwealth governments, parliamentarians, and Rotarians, Gordon underscored the significance of sustained momentum, and the inspiration drawn from individuals like Paul Alexander, whose death was announced earlier that day. Paul’s lifelong achievements, despite having spent 70 years in an iron lung, serve as a testament to human resilience and an inspiration to many.
Gordon reminded us of the importance of recognising and placing trust in the science that exists today which will make the eradication of this disease possible and encourage others as well as ourselves to see this through to the end. When the finishing line is in sight you speed up and do not slow down.
Highlighting the UK's significant contributions to the campaign, Gordon commended the nation as the second-largest donor nation to the effort with $1.4 billion donated to date. Last year alone, this worldwide initiative facilitated the vaccination of 800 million children under the age of 5. At the time of writing there have been no new cases of WPV1 reported since October 2023. While celebrating these achievements,
Gordon also sounded a note of caution, reminding attendees that the threat of polio persists until eradication is achieved. Failure to sustain current efforts could result in a resurgence of the disease, with potentially devastating consequences.
Total Wild Polio cases
Year-to-date 2024
Total
2023
Total
2022
Total
2021
Total
2020
Globally
2
12
30
6
140
- in endemic countries:
2
12
22
5
140
- in post-endemic countries:
0
0
8
1
0
2024 Wild Polio Case Total - 2 - Pakistan 2
2024 Circulating Variant Polio Case Total - 9 Guinea - 1, Mali - 1, Nigeria 4, Somalia - 1, Yemen - 2
2023 Wild Polio Case Total 12 - Afghanistan 6, Pakistan 6
2022 Circulating Variant Polio Cases – 914 in 26 Countries
2023 Circulating Variant Polio Case Total - 522 Benin - 3, Burkina Faso - 2, Burundi - 1, Central African Republic - 14, Chad - 55, Cote d' Ivoire - 6, DR Congo - 223, Guinea - 47, Indonesia - 6, Israel - 1, Kenya - 8, Madagascar - 24, Mali - 15, Mauritania - 1, Mozambique - 5,Niger - 2, Nigeria - 87, Somalia - 8, South Sudan - 2, Tanzania - 3, Yemen - 8, Zambia - 1, Zimbabwe - 1.
New Polio Cases & Samples reported this week -
Pakistan: two WPV1 cases and 21 positive environmental samples
Burkina Faso: one cVDPV2-positive environmental sample
DR Congo: one cVDPV2-positive environmental sample
Guinea: one cVDPV2 case and 11 cVDPV2-positive environmental samples
Mali: one cVDPV2 case
Mauritania: one cVDPV2-positive environmental sample
Nigeria: three cVDPV2-positive environmental samples
Somalia: one cVDPV2 case
Yemen: two cVDPV2 cases
Zimbabwe: four cVDPV2-positive environmental samples
Quote of the Day - "Kindness in words created confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates love." Lao Tzu
The Final Two Polio Endemic Countries:
Pakistan Two new Wild Polio cases reported this week. Two Wild Polio cases reported in 2024. Six Wild Polio Cases reported in 2023. Twenty Wild Polio cases reported in 2022. The most recent case had an onset of paralysis on 10/24/23. Twenty-one WPV1 Samples and no cVDPV2 Positive Environmental Samples were reported this week in Pakistan.
Afghanistan No new Wild Polio cases reported this week. No Wild Polio cases reported in 2024. Six Wild Polio Cases reported in 2023, Two Wild Polio Cases reported in 2022. The most recent case had an onset of paralysis on 9/4/23. No WPV1 Samples and no cVDPV2 Positive Environmental Samples were reported this week in Afghanistan.
For the week ending 3/30/24
Dear Polio Eradication Warriors,
No new Wild Polio cases reported this week. We are now 4 weeks since the Onset of Paralysis of the most recent reported Wild Polio Case in the Balochistan, Pakistan.
On 27 March 2014, WHO’s South-East Asia Region (SEARO) was certified wild polio free – a massive undertaking in a region that is home to one-quarter of the world’s population. Now, a decade later, all 11 countries in the region are still free of the virus, thanks to continued commitments to vaccination and disease surveillance.
Save the Date - World Immunization Week - April 24-30
Total Wild Polio cases
Year-to-date 2024
Total
2023
Total
2022
Total
2021
Total
2020
Globally
2
12
30
6
140
- in endemic countries:
2
12
22
5
140
- in post-endemic countries:
0
0
8
1
0
2024 Wild Polio Case Total - 2 - Pakistan 2
2024 Circulating Variant Polio Case Total - 10 Guinea - 1, Mali - 1, Nigeria 4, Somalia - 1, South Sudan - 1, Yemen - 2
2023 Wild Polio Case Total 12 - Afghanistan 6, Pakistan 6
Côte d’Ivoire: two cVDPV2-positive environmental samples
Liberia: one cVDPV2-positive environmental sample
Nigeria: five cVDPV2-positive environmental samples
South Sudan: two cVDPV2 cases (1-2023, 1-2024)
Quote of the Day - "We must give more in order to get more. It is the generous giving of ourselves that produces the generous harvest." Orison Swett Marden, author
The Final Two Polio Endemic Countries:
Pakistan No new Wild Polio cases reported this week. Two Wild Polio cases reported in 2024. Six Wild Polio Cases reported in 2023. Twenty Wild Polio cases reported in 2022. The most recent case had an onset of paralysis on 10/24/23. Ten WPV1 Samples and no cVDPV2 positive Environmental Samples were reported this week in Pakistan.
Afghanistan No new Wild Polio cases reported this week. No Wild Polio cases reported in 2024. Six Wild Polio Cases reported in 2023, Two Wild Polio Cases reported in 2022. The most recent case had an onset of paralysis on 9/4/23. Fifteen WPV1 Samples and no cVDPV2 positive Environmental Samples were reported this week in Afghanistan.
Advocate, Donate & Educate to END POLIO NOW & FOREVER!
20,500,000 Children Saved from the Paralysis of Polio
Our Goal is Global Polio Eradication!!
Terry Ziegler, Polio Update Newsletter Editor
Rotary Region 36 END POLIO NOW Coordinator 2024-27
Five of Ten Human Trafficking Bills Still Alive After Second Funnel
The 2024 Legislative Session is about two-thirds of the way through their work this session with approximately four weeks to go! This gives us time to get the remaining human trafficking bills across the finish line while turning our attention to the budget process. The Revenue Estimating Committee met on March 15th indicating a reduction in available funds for the legislature to spend. The silver lining is that the budget process should start in earnest sooner rather than later as we expect leadership to provide their budget chairs with their Fiscal Year 25 budget targets. Below you will find a list of the five human trafficking bills that are still alive and the NAHT is tracking. These five bills passed the second funnel and one of them SF 2243 passed the legislature unanimously and is on the Governor’s desk for her signature. To read more about the five bills, tap here.
Also note that if your spouse/partner are both members of our club, you are getting 2 copies of the Rotary Magazine, that will change effective January 1, 2021 to where your household will only receive 1 copy now.
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