Jim Lewis is a survivor and advocate for the eradication of Polio. Because he got the virus on his parents 10th wedding anniversary, when he was a young boy, Jim travels the world to help Rotary International (RI) eradicate polio.
Eradicating Polio is the number one objective of RI, and it has been since they got involved in 1979. Although Polio is eradicated in the western hemisphere, there is still some work to do to eradicate this terrible disease.
As defined by the CDC, Polio, or poliomyelitis, is a crippling and potentially deadly infectious disease. It is caused by the poliovirus. The virus spreads from person to person and can invade an infected person’s brain and spinal cord, causing paralysis (can’t move parts of the body).
Poliovirus only infects humans. It is very contagious and spreads through person-to-person contact. The virus lives in an infected person’s throat and intestines. It enters the body through the mouth and spreads through contact with the feces (poop) of an infected person and, though less common, through droplets from a sneeze or cough. You can get infected with poliovirus if you have feces on your hands and you touch your mouth. Also, you can get infected if you put in your mouth objects like toys that are contaminated with feces (poop).
GPEI (Global Polio Eradication Initiative) is made up of ordinary people, doing extraordinary things. Those groups are from Rotary, WHO (world health organization), the CDC, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
Jim is now an advocating for those who have Polio, and working hard to get those survivors the surgeries, calipers, wheelchairs, and vocational training. Jim says that the needs of polio survivors are great, and any bit helps.
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