Members of Rotary International perform humanitarian service work around the world to promote goodwill and peace, principles exemplified in many of the service-oriented activities, donations and projects that Rotarians have completed in Caborca.
I first became aware of the local Rotary Club (Unidad 3) after suffering a debilitating knee injury while in Caborca. I was bed-ridden - unable to use crutches and without any source of mobility. Then, a friend who is a member of the local club brought me one of the loaner wheelchairs that Rotary provides to injured people in need. At the time, that single gesture made a tremendous difference in my life, giving me freedom to be able to get out of bed and have some mobility (to learn more about these wheelchairs, click here.
Since then, I’ve become aware of more services that the very active local club provides to the residents of Caborca, to include:
Building handicapped access ramps and structures in the downtown area
Providing playground equipment for local parks
Donating garbage trucks
Donating an ambulance to the local Red Cross
Donating a “Jaws of Life” apparatus to extricate accident victims from their vehicles
Donating portable x-ray machines
Donating a CAT Scan (computerized axial tomography) machine to a local hospital
Funding medical services for children
In an interesting story related to me by Ken Caplin of the Orange County Rotary Club, the donated Hurst Jaws of Life has been used to remove accident victims from their vehicles, where before the local emergency response agencies had no means of doing so. Among those rescued by the Jaws of Life include a former mayor of Caborca, who was extracted from his car following a highway traffic accident.
Rotary International’s primary goal is the eradication of polio, and every year in February, Rotarians from Orange County, California board a bus to come to Caborca for a polio immunization weekend organized by Orange County Rotarian Mike Brunhober. Along the way they pick up Rotary members from Southern California and Arizona, and they all spend the weekend with Caborca Rotarians immunizing children against the poliovirus.
Although there are no documented cases of polio in Mexico, the poliovirus is highly contagious, and if an infected international traveler were to visit an area where the population was not vaccinated it could cause a serious outbreak.
During the immunization weekend, the Rotary members also have dinners together, discuss projects, and hold a fundraiser. This year they raised $4,463 for the Caborca Rotary Club’s Children’s Medical Fund, and participated in the dedication of $35,000 in donated playground equipment at the Unidad Deportiva Eduardo Gomez park.
The members of Rotary International continue to make a positive difference in the lives of the citizens of Caborca, epitomizing the Rotary’s motto of “Service above Self.” To learn more about Rotary International, visit www.rotary.org.
