Once again Faversham Rotary has taken delivery of 4000 purple crocus corms for planting around the town to raise awareness of polio and Rotary’s continuing contribution to its eradication worldwide. When a child receives their dose of polio vaccine, their little finger is dyed purple, hence Purple4Polio and the purple crocus campaign symbol.
This year the Club has been supported in its efforts by several local groups.
The 1st Faversham Scouts Beaver Pack will be planting their crocus in pots to take home with them. Then they can put them in their gardens, so they will be spread out across Faversham and some of the local villages. The Pack leader explains why they’ve got them, what they represent and how they help to End Polio Now. It gives the Beavers some responsibility as well, as they have to look after the crocus, which can also go towards their gardening badge.
Faversham Rotary is continuing to forge links with local schools. Club members have recently met the head teachers of Davington Primary School and St Mary of Charity Primary School. Both teachers were keen that their pupils should be involved in Purple4Polio and so crocus planting days were arranged at each school. Rotarians were invited to talk to the children about the campaign to End Polio Now and to explain the connection with purple crocus. Many of the children at St Mary’s school wore purple clothes for their Purple4Polio day and a collection at the school gates raised over £80 to help fund the immunisation programme.
Faversham Rotary has also collaborated with other local groups, including Faversham in Bloom and Abel’s Acre, to plant up other areas of the town with purple crocus, adding to areas planted in previous years.
The Club will be planting the remaining few hundred crocus in small pots ready to ‘sell’ for a donation when we will be in Faversham Market Place in the spring promoting Rotary and its local and international projects.
Thank you to everyone who has helped Faversham Rotary in its campaign to help eradicate polio worldwide.
Look out for the purple crocus appearing all around the town in the spring!
Anyone can be a part of the fight to end polio and have their donation to Rotary matched 2-to-1 by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Visit endpolio.org to learn more and donate.