Community Corner
Rotary Club of Half Moon Bay Spaghetti Dinner a Huge Success: Teams with Odd Fellows Ocean View Lodge and Senior Coastsiders to Provide $12,000+ to End Polio Now
Spaghetti dinner at Half Moon Bay Senior Center contributed over $12,000 to End Polio Now! campaign sponsored by Rotary International
Rotarian and Odd Fellow Joe Brennan took the challenge from Rotary International to help eradicate worldwide polio. His simple idea – a family-friendly spaghetti dinner – raised not only funds, but community engagement, fellowship, and collaboration
The January 27th spaghetti dinner took place with funding by Rotarians to underwrite food expenses and dinner donations, the generous provision of a dinner venue by the Senior Coastsiders, and the volunteer efforts of the Ocean View Lodge of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows to cook, serve, and promote the event. The youth of Half Moon Bay’s Interact Club served almost 200 diners who enjoyed a casual evening of spaghetti and entertainment. Over $4,000 was raised through $20 dinner donations and Italian wine With the matching grant of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the spaghetti dinner evening translates into over $12,000 to Rotary International’s signature cause, End Polio Now!
To underscore the importance of this cause, Rotary District 5150 Governor Eric Schmautz spoke about his personal experience administering the polio vaccine to children in Africa and about the threat that our global porous borders pose when polio is still endemic in Nigeria, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. One of the biggest success stories is India – in 2014, it was certified polio-free, an incredible feat for a country once considered the hardest place on earth to stop polio. It is funding from efforts like the Rotary Club of Half Moon Bay spaghetti dinner that is making results like those in India possible.
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The fifty plus members of the Rotary Club of Half Moon Bay donate time and money to support the under-served in the community and around the world. The Club’s signature local cause is RotaCare, the free medical clinic for the uninsured in Half Moon Bay and the surrounding Coastside communities. The Rotary Club of Half Moon Bay is one of 34,000 clubs around the world. The Half Moon Bay Club meets each Thursday for lunch at the Portuguese Center at 724 Kelly Street in downtown Half Moon Bay. http://www.rotaryofhalfmoonbay.com/
Contact Mary Corcoran, Public Relations Chairperson, at mcorcoranhmb@gmail.com or 650-218-0436.