While some folks in Columbus work against vaccines, there are still plenty who understand their importance and are diligently working to fight preventable diseases no matter which way the socio-political winds blow.

Members of the Belpre Rotary Club collected more than $1,700 in donations as part of Rotary International’s effort to eradicate polio worldwide.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, children should get four doses of inactivated poliovirus vaccine — at 2 months, 4 months, 6-18 months and 4-6 years. Those recommendations have been in place for nearly 70 years, meaning “wild” poliovirus was eliminated in the U.S. in 1979. Still there are rare cases that pop up, posing dangers to unvaccinated communities. That makes it all the more important for parents to continue to follow the guidelines and not let efforts such as Rotary International’s be in vain.

Meanwhile, polio is still an epidemic in countries such as Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Jim Rogers, past assistant governor of Ohio Rotary District 6690, spoke to Belpre Rotarians about the need to keep up the fight.

“Should we fail, polio will surge,” he said.

Rotary International is a founding partner in the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, which has been working since 1988. Polio around the world has been reduced by 99.9%.

As parents continue to do the right thing for their children here, organizations such as Belpre Rotary will keep up the fight everywhere. That’s a comfort, but also a reminder that if we can keep them from going it alone, we must.