BALLOONS and cake marked a major milestone for the Rotary Club of Swindon which celebrates 90 years of humanitarian service to local and international communities this year.

As the president's baton was handed on to Ian Sharpe by outgoing president Michelle Leighton, Rotarians reflected on their recent work.

Peter Davey, the Rotary Club of Great Britain and Ireland president said that internationally, Rotary Swindon has been very active in the End Polio Now campaign with one strain of the disease being conquered, leaving two others. Currently there are only two countries, Afghanistan and Pakistan, where polio infections are taking place.

The biggest challenge, Mr Davey said, would be to keep money coming in when there are no more cases because a disease cannot be declared extinct until there have been no infections for three years.

Until then, all children need to be immunised to prevent the paralysing disease from spreading to areas currently free of infection.

The Rotary Club of Swindon has proud connections to local causes, Mr Davey said, with the club’s two biggest projects being Swindon Cares and the Charity Ball which between them have raised almost a million pounds.

Mr Davey looked back over his year in office and noted how differently things are done now in the Rotary Club due to advancing technology. Instead of travelling to committee meetings in various parts of the country and staying away from home for several days at a time, he told how he hosted three on-line meetings in one day on his computer.

He also urged the Swindon Rotarians to reach out to young professionals who might want to join the Rotary Club of Swindon.

He said there are still many organisations and groups that need fundraising help such as Swindon Dial a Ride, Crowdys Hill School for special needs children; Wessex Children's Hospice Trust; the Olive Tree Cafe, which helps people recovering from mental health difficulties; Hometruths, which provides one-to-one support risk assessment and safety planning to survivors of domestic abuse; Dressability, which helps local people who need their clothes adapted due to physical or learning disabilities or because they are elderly; Swindon 105.5, the 24-hour community radio station that gives unemployed youngsters, students, and groups with disabilities work opportunities; Swindon Therapy Centre for MS; Headway Swindon, which supports people affected by brain injury and the Swindon & District Samaritans.

u Rotary Swindon meets at the Kings Hotel at lunchtime on Tuesdays. Guest speakers are invited to address the club on topical issues at three meetings a month, and club business is attended to at the fourth meeting. Rotary’s motto is Service Above Self and Rotarians are asked to test everything they think, say, and do against The Four-Way Test: Is it the truth, is it fair to all concerned, will it build goodwill and better friendships, and will it be beneficial to all concerned? If you would like to find out more, email Rotary Club of Swindon’s secretary, Ian Dobie at: ian.dobiesnr@btinternet.com