Scotland hosts polio photo exhibit
Rotary International News -- 5 March 2009
A special exhibit depicting the fight against polio through the photographs of London polio survivor Gautam Lewis was open to the public 25 February through 4 March in Glasgow, Scotland.
Photo by Bob Tomlinson
The opening of a photo exhibit showcasing the work of a London polio survivor was a highlight of an End Polio Now promotion week in western Scotland.
The exhibit, held in the foyer of the Mitchell Library in Glasgow, was open to the public from 25 February through 4 March. It depicted the fight against polio through the photographs of London polio survivor and advocate Gautam Lewis, who recently returned to his birthplace of Kolkata, India, to immunize children against the disease.
The exhibit also included the images of photographer Jean-Marc Giboux, who has documented the battle against polio in its remaining strongholds of Afghanistan, India, Nigeria, and Pakistan throughout the past decade.
More than 100 Rotarians and guests attended the opening, including members of Scotland’s Indian and Pakistani communities; RI Director R. Gordon R. McInally and his wife, Heather; Rotary International in Great Britain and Ireland President-nominee Jim Moulson; District Governor Catherine Stewart and her husband, Jim; and Past District Governor Drew Hughes.
Organized by District 1230, the exhibit was made possible by the donation of the Mitchell Library facilities by the Lord Provost of the City of Glasgow.
Scottish Rotarians also took part in a global effort to project the End Polio Now message onto iconic buildings, including the Colosseum and the British House of Parliament, in observance of Rotary's 104th anniversary, 23 February. Three sites were lit up in western Scotland: the City Chambers in Glasgow, Culzean Castle in Ayrshire, and the Greenock Town Hall on the River Clyde.
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Adapted with permission from www.ribi.org, the official Web site of Rotary International in Great Britain and Ireland