One Simple Meal. One Powerful Mission.
The Rotary Club of Central Port of Spain (RCCPOS) hosted its fundraising event, Gala with a Purpose: A Poor Man’s Dinner, on Friday, October 17, 2025, at the Hyatt Regency Hotel, Port of Spain, from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. And what a night of engaging conversation, learning, great food, good vibes and fundraising it was!
This impactful evening raised critical funds for End Polio Now, Rotary International’s global campaign to eradicate polio. Proceeds will directly benefit PolioPlus, Rotary’s flagship programme dedicated to the worldwide elimination of this preventable disease.
The Gala with a Purpose aligns with Rotary’s World’s Greatest Meal to End Polio initiative. Each dollar raised is tripled through Rotary’s partnership with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, significantly amplifying the reach and impact of every contribution. Funds raised support vaccine delivery, disease surveillance, and frontline health workers, especially in the world's most vulnerable regions.
This unique event offered guests a humble, symbolic meal in solidarity with those less fortunate. It was an evening of meaning and unity, featuring a keynote address, live entertainment, door prizes, and a cash bar.
Our featured speaker of the night, Dr Avery Hinds, reminded the audience that the Polio outbreak was the reason for the postponement of Carnival in the 70s. He emphasised that persons may be carriers of the Polio virus even though they are asymptomatic. Thus, the threat of spread is real as people travel so much more now, including Caribbean nationals. This makes us vulnerable if the virus is not eradicated. Dr. Hinds has dedicated much of his effort toward strengthening the data collection and surveillance "machinery" both locally and in the health systems of middle-income, developing countries in the Caribbean region, to improve monitoring of vaccine-preventable diseases – including Polio; and to strengthen evidence-based decision-making.
Our featured speaker of the night, Dr Avery Hinds, reminded the audience that the Polio outbreak was the reason for the postponement of Carnival in the 70s. He emphasised that persons may be carriers of the Polio virus even though they are asymptomatic. Thus, the threat of spread is real as people travel so much more now, including Caribbean nationals. This makes us vulnerable if the virus is not eradicated. Dr. Hinds has dedicated much of his effort toward strengthening the data collection and surveillance "machinery" both locally and in the health systems of middle-income, developing countries in the Caribbean region, to improve monitoring of vaccine-preventable diseases – including Polio; and to strengthen evidence-based decision-making.
One of the surprises of the evening was the presentation of the Paul Harris Fellow to Dr. David Rudder, OCC, famed Calypsonian and polio survivor. While he could not attend, the singer sent greetings which were read by Immediate Past President Elitha Rocke-Maharaj on his behalf.
RCCPOS' President Elect and Fundraising Chair, Alicia Fisher, said, “This event is more than a fundraiser. It’s a call to action, and a reminder that we each have a role to play in protecting the world’s children from a preventable disease.”
Though nearly eradicated, polio remains a threat. This highly infectious virus mainly affects children under five but can strike anyone unvaccinated. It attacks the nervous system, causing irreversible paralysis, sometimes within hours, and can be fatal when the respiratory muscles are affected. One in every 200 infections leads to permanent paralysis.
There is no cure, but there is prevention, and vaccination remains the only defence.
Since launching PolioPlus in 1985, Rotary has led a relentless global effort to eliminate polio, becoming a founding partner of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI). In 1988, polio was endemic in 125 countries, paralysing 350,000 children annually. Thanks to coordinated vaccination campaigns and surveillance, cases have plummeted by over 99%.
Yet the fight is not over. In 2025, Papua New Guinea confirmed its first outbreak since 2018, while Nigeria, Yemen, Ethiopia, Pakistan, and Chad continue to report cases and environmental detections. The World Health Organisation (WHO) still classifies the international spread of poliovirus as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.
Without sustained efforts, the WHO warns, polio could once again paralyse 200,000 children every year within a decade. As Rotary emphasises: "Polio anywhere is a threat everywhere."
RCCPOS thanks community members, partners, and supporters for joining this inspiring evening of purpose, fellowship, and hope and for the opportunity to be part of the generation that ends polio for good.