Waitrose Lend A Hand To Eradicate Polio

Local store recognised for charity help

Waitrose – West Ealing has been awarded for its involvement in a project helping raise awareness about Polio.

The store worked with the Rotary Club of Hanwell & Northfields on the world-wide initiative to stamp out polio forever.

Waitrose allowed Rotary to collect outside the store and also provided 1,300 "goody bags" which Rotary then took into 3 local schools as part of their Polio Awareness campaign.

Polio is a crippling, and sometimes fatal, disease and still a very harrowing reality for children in parts of Africa and Asia and threatens children everywhere. It is highly virulent and only an air flight away from the UK

Over £4,600 was raised between July 2009 and June 2010 this will result in over 23,000 Polio inoculations being given.

In recognition of the significant support received from The Management and Partners at Waitrose, West Ealing, Sue Sands, Immediate Past President of the Rotary Club of Hanwell and Northfields presented a Service Recognition Award to the Partner Council at the store.

She said:

“We are absolutely delighted to have raised £4,600 and want to thank everyone for getting behind our campaign so enthusiastically.

“Rotary has been involved in this fight for 25 years and the world is so close to being free from polio for good thanks to the joint hard work of organisations and governments. How fantastic for a town, individual, business or organisation to join the fight and be able to say, ‘I helped to wipe out a disease for only the second time in history, after smallpox. I stopped children from dying - I help change the world’.”

“This money really will help to make a difference and every penny will go towards the continuing efforts to destroy this horrible disease. A polio free world is just around the corner.”

6 July 2010