Last Friday the annual Pumpkins for Polio auction, organized by the Rotary Club of Campbell River, took place at the Campbell River Men’s Club.
The pumpkins were donated by Discovery Foods and Coastal Black Estate Winery and members of the Campbell River Arts Council painted/decorated 22 pumpkins. Three First Nations carvers – Junior Henderson, Mulidzas (Curtis) Wilson and William Henderson – provided their creations, and Coun. Ron Kerr provided his artwork.
The pumpkins were auctioned off by Kevin Simonett and the attendees had a lot to choose from, which resulted in lively bidding.
At the end of the evening, more than $1,800 was raised to support Rotary International’s efforts to End Polio Now.
The End Polio Now initiative is supported by the World Health Organization and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Besides the usual matching by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the auction proceeds will also be matched by the federal government, so effectively $9,000 will support the vaccination of the children in Pakistan and Afghanistan where Polio is still endemic. For more than a year, no polio cases have been registered in Nigeria.
To read more about the fight against Polio visit: http://www.endpolio.org/ .
To make a donation to the End Polio Now initiative, follow the instructions provided on the website - a tax receipt will be provided.