Fresh from the Malta Commonwealth Conference the previous weekend, Ramesh Ferris, a global spokesperson for Rotary International’s initiative to eradicate polio, was in Sechelt on Dec. 4 to speak at two events.
Ferris’ passion for the cause stems from an intensely personal space. He was born 36 years ago in India to a poor mother. At the age of 18 months he contracted polio.
“It was through no fault of my birth mother that I wasn’t vaccinated against polio. Perhaps she never heard of the opportunity to have me vaccinated, or maybe she wasn’t able to take me [to a vaccinating site],” Ferris explained in an interview.
Shortly after, the indigent mother placed her son for adoption.
A serendipitous turn of events led Ferris’ adoptive parents from Whitehorse, Yukon to the orphanage the little boy was housed in. After a back-and-forth argument with the Canadian government about the wisdom of allowing a boy with polio-ravaged legs in the country, the Ferris family finally prevailed, and at age two and a half, Ferris became the first Yukon international adoptee.
A series of operations at Vancouver Children’s Hospital allowed the boy to walk for the first time at three. As he explained in his presentation, once the legs are paralyzed by polio, the harm can’t be reversed. Operations allowed the legs to be straightened and for Ferris to be fitted with prosthetics.
All this was dramatically demonstrated as Ferris made his way to the Chatelech stage crawling on his backside – a startling introduction, to say the least, but his objective is not to draw pity for himself but support for the children still at risk from this deadly disease.
The Rotary International campaign called End Polio Now, which began in 1988, is seeing amazing results. Now only two countries in the world currently have new polio cases: Afghanistan and Pakistan. But lest we get complacent, Ferris is quick to point out that with jet travel and liquid borders, there is always the danger that polio could once again become an epidemic.
“I contracted polio 25 years after the vaccine was approved. It costs less than $1 USD for a vaccine. It’s only $3 to vaccinate a child for life. We buy coffees that cost more than that,” he said.
Right now there is $1.5 billion USD shortfall in the fight to make polio the second disease to be eradicated in our lifetime.
Over the years Ferris has done much to bring the cause to light.
In 2008 he hand-cycled across Canada. Beginning at mile zero on the Trans Canada Highway in Victoria, in 174 days he cycled 7,140 kms to Cape Spear in Newfoundland. During that time, he made over 200 presentations, gave 350 media interviews and raised thousands of dollars.
At the recent Malta meeting, Ferris had an opportunity to speak to many heads of state including the Queen and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. The PM reassured him that commitments given by the former government would be honoured.
Now, Ferris said, it’s important for Canadians to continue to urge our government to rally in this fight against polio. He urged audience members at Friday’s events to Tweet, go on Facebook and/or write letters to our MPs to let them know of our support for the cause.
Ferris said over the past 20 years Rotary clubs on the Sunshine Coast have raised $100,000, an amazing amount for such a small area. The clubs continue to do so, and any donations are welcome. Go to Rotary.org or contact a local Rotarian for details.
There are people on the Coast living with post-polio syndrome, the after-effect of the disease. And Ferris said it’s crucial for all parents to get their children vaccinated at the appropriate age.
“In our efforts, failure and complacency are not options. We will work until the end of polio is here,” Ferris said.
