Polio was once one of the most feared diseases globally. A highly infectious disease with no cure, polio spread rapidly through communities and left devastation in its wake. Every year, thousands of children used to be killed and hundreds of thousands paralyzed.

More than 250 people gathered for freshly steamed lobster, corn, coleslaw, drinks, and great conversation on a warm late summer evening in the backyard of a private resident in the Mt. Airy section of Philadelphia.

It was a really hot summer.

So, seven Chestnut Hill Rotary volunteers decided to take of care and water eight newly planted trees at Eleanor C. Emlen Elementary School over the summer, donating over 120 hours over three months.

Chestnut Hill Rotary teamed up with PAR Recycle Works last week to recycle electronics including old computers, televisions, small appliances to help change lives.

Chestnut Hill Rotary received the Club Excellence Award this week from Rotary International’s 2024-25 President Stephanie Urchick for “foster a positive experience for its members and reflecting the value of Rotary.”

‘My best friend in the 5th grade had had polio and wore a brace on her lower leg which was withered,” said member Ann Elkington. “It hurt me for her that she was embarrassed by having to wear the clunky brace and the dorky shoes, and struggled to walk straight.”

Following a recent presentation about the work of Rotaplast International, Inc.—the organization committed to helping children and families worldwide by eliminating the burden of cleft lip and/or palate—member Andy Sears was moved enough to present a challenge to Chestnut Hill Rotary.

Rotary members Dietrich Bilger, Leslie Shur and Maggie Stoeffel placed 15 storm drain markers along Germantown Avenue, Pastorius Park, and nearby streets in Chestnut Hill, as an environmental awareness project.

Members of the Northwest Philadelphia community gathered on a warm Saturday morning in July to dedicate a new playground designed to meet the needs of women and their children who are clients of Life Turning Point of Philadelphia.

Two members received high honors for their work to further Rotary’s efforts to help the local and international communities at a recent Chestnut Hill Rotary meetings.