Uncategorized

RAG4Clubfoot participates at the House of Friendship – Melbourne, Australia

June 18, 2023

Always a highlight of the year is participating in the House of Friendship at Rotary International Convention. RAG4Clubfoot Board members and their spounses assist to greet visitors to the booth and share ways Rotarians and their club and/or district can get involved!

Booth #454 – RAG4Clubfoot at the HoF in Melbourne, Australia

April 25, 2023

We are preparing and packing banners, brochures, books, display materials for the RAG4Clubfoot booth in the House of Friendship. We’ll be ready to greet you!

Visit us in Booth #454 – RAG4Clubfoot

We’d love to share how your district and/or club can partner with other Rotary clubs/districts on global grants to expand Ponseti Method training to orthopaedic surgeons in resource limited countries.

RAG4Clubfoot celebrates the article, “Spreading the word about clubfoot treatment” in Rotary magazine (April 2023)

April 25, 2023

RAG4Clubfoot celebrates the publishing of an article, Spreading the word about clubfoot treatment, in the Rotary magazine (April 2023) focused on clubfoot and our efforts to take action to create a world free of clubfoot disability. We are thrilled beyond words!! Networking at International Convention in Houston helped connect two Rotarians to exchange ideas about this possibility.
The article is out in print and online:

RAG4Clubfoot expands their reach into Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Hampshire

April 25, 2023

Ralph Hammond, our newest Board member and incoming co-President of the Rotary Club of Bedford, Massachusetts helped to set-up a table in the House of Friendship at a multi-Districts’ conference:
D7890 Western MA and Northern CT
D7910 Central MA
D7930 Eastern MA (Boston and north into Southern NH

Ralph was assisted by the other co-President, Al Roscoe in sharing the concept with fellow Rotarians to support children in developing countries. To focus on training medical officials. Promoting the concept of encouraging families to correct this problem with their children as automatically as we do here in the USA was taken very seriously by those people that took time to chat with us

Way to go, Al & Ralph!! We appreciate you so much!

RAG4Clubfoot Present at D6000 conferences

April 25, 2023

RAG4Clubfoot had a display in the House of Friendship at District 6000 (Iowa, USA) Conferences in three locations:
Carroll, Iowa – April 15
Coralville, Iowa – April 22
West Des Moines – April 29

Thank you Lesley, our Board Secretary, for the display!

Colombia looking to expand their brace bank and educate parents on the importance of the brace

April 25, 2023

Colombia
Written by Marcel van Opstal (Colombia) and Astrid Medina, both are members of RC of Bogotá Centenario (Colombia)

Rotarians in Colombia propose to expand their efforts to ensure 823 children complete their clubfoot treatment by expanding the number of braces available in a brace bank and to provide training to 400 parents regarding the importance of using the braces until age 5 as well as handling and appropriate use of the brace.

In 2021, Rotary and the Colombian Orthopedic Society created the brace bank that lends braces to children free of charge and changes them as the child’s foot grows. This use and reuse of braces saves resources and allows that by wearing braces up to 5 years of age, children maintain the good results of the Ponseti Method.

It has been a fantastic collaborative exercise between the two districts of Colombia, with contributions from more than 25 Colombian Rotary Clubs, 5 Rotary Clubs of Calgary, RAG4Clubfoot on behalf of a donation from an Iowa City (Iowa) Rotary Club, District 5360 (Calgary, Canada) & District 6000 (Iowa, USA).

Global Grant (#2238189) application has been submitted to The Rotary Foundation for review and approval.

Lucky’s Feet — Children’s Story Book Spreading Awareness

April 25, 2023

We’re grateful to share that there have been two instances where the children’s storybook, Lucky’s Feet has been read to children around the globe and impact communities (South Africa and Eldridge, Iowa, USA).

Through this, children shared that they learned several things, including:
– It’s not anyone’s fault when a child has a disability.

– We need to be kind to people with disabilities.

– We need to have compassion.

Furthermore, a board member was contacted and was able to connect resources at a local level in South Africa! We are resource connectors in helping find practical treatment for children with clubfoot!

Video recording of author Dr. Tom Cook reading, Lucky’s Feet

RAG4Clubfoot present at NE PETS House of Friendships

April 25, 2023

March 9 – 11, 2023
RAG4Clubfoot seized the opportunity to display our work in the House of Friendship at Northeast Presidents-Elect (NE PETS) Training Seminar held in West Newton, MA (USA) March 9 – 11. Districts present were: 7780, 7850, 7890, 7910, 7930, 7950 and 7980.

Thank you, Ralph Hammond, our newest Board member for introducing us to your region!

Photo (l – r): Marcel van Opstal, Co-Chair, Ralph Hammond, Board member; and Victor Tom, DG 7910.

Photo (l – r): Marcel van Opstal, Co-Chair; Tomeka Petersen, Co-Chair; and Ralph Hammond, Board member & PDG 7910.

Argentina Update – Written by Elisa Oviedo, RC of Ground Bourg

November 28, 2022

In March 2022, training was carried out by the Vocation Training Team (VTT) Dr. Morcuende, Dr. Paz and Dra. Nogueira. Initially for seven hospitals in Argentina where 70% of clubfoot cases are found. We also delivered 500 splints and equipped the clinics so that the Ponseti Clinics could function. We also delivered printed material. The second visit of the VTT was in October, finding the hospitals in full application of the Ponseti Method. Two hospitals were added that we had not originally planned.

Being such a successful project, Rotary and the World Health Organization invited grant primary contacts to present at the WHO headquarters in Geneva to coincide with World Day 2022 Polio and Beyond, October 22.

We transferred the invitation to the VTT, happily they were able to travel to Geneva. Dr. Morcuende gave a 7 minute lecture with a very concise and sensitive PowerPoint presentation and answered questions. This project was selected along with 20 – 25 other Global Grants from around the world focused on Maternal and Child Health, a privilege!