The Wilmington morning star. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1909-1990, 1946-01-06
County Organization Set
E0r13th March OfDirnes

HllQ Color Idll as 1CS VICTIMS.
It strikes without warning in
each of the 3,O4O counties in the
nation. New Hanover is not with
out exception. During the past
year four persons were stricken
in the county and at the present
time the county chapter is caring
and paying for the care of five
children who have fallen victim
to the disease.
Nine persons were reported to
the chapter in 1914 as suffering
from polio. Individual figures are
not available for the prior years
but % persons have been treated
locally in the years from 1918 to
1913.
The drive, which includes street
campaigns; store to store and
house to house collections; special
events including dances and mail
solicitations is held yearly.
Retain so Per Cent
The New Hanover county chapter
keeps one-half of the yearly con-
tributions with the balance being
sent to the National Foundation to
be used for special disqualification,
new equipment, transportation and
treatment of polio victims.
Locally, the fund is handled by
the county chapter which allocates
funds as needed for the care of
local patients. At the present time
the cost Of caring for the five pa
tents amounts to 1925 each week.
The weekly cost of $45 per patient
runs the total to approximately
So, 500 year for each individual
case.
In 1913 the New Hanover collec-
ton amounted to $1,911.08. This
figure increased to $5,092.18 in
1914 which was more than doubled
by the 1945 collection of $11,351.
Members of the New Hanover
county chapter report healthy
balance" in the polio fund, but
they are anxious to increase this
balance to car for any emergency
which may arise should an epidem-
ic of the dreaded disease reach
''out Of hand proportions.
Members of the county chapter
who serve from year to year are
H. c. Rodgers, president and local
attorney; R. E. Tapp, treasurer,
affiliated with the Broadfoot Iron
company and the Rev. J. B. Nc
Quere, secretary.
Rhodes appointed further COM
mittees to serve on the drive at a
meeting in his office Friday night.
Included are Solomon Stern
berger, local attorney, recently re-
turned from overseas duty; Har-
ry L. Dosher, clerk in the Record
er's court, recently returned to
civilian life after service in the
Navy and H. Winfield Smith, all
of whom will serve as members
of the publicity committee.
Rhodes will announce members
of his operating committees later
in the week following acceptance
of nominees proposed at the Fri
day night meeting.
The chairman, accompanied by
members of his publicity commit
tee and the county chapter will at
tend district meeting of county
chiarmen in Kingston Friday, JAN
uary II, at which time furtherance
of plans pertaining to the New
Hanover campaign will be discuss
ed by state and national represent
atives of the Foundation.
18th Anniversary
The ssMarch of Dimes yearly
event throu ghout the nation was
instituted 10 years ago to celebrate
the occasion of the birthday of
President Roosevelt, himself a VIC
tim of the disease a few years
before.
Since that time the idea has
"caught on and the yearly col
lection is entered into with much
fervor by persons who are inter-
ested in combating OF polio.
officials of the National Founda-
tion are this year carrying on the
drive without the presence of the
man who inaugurated this fight
and became its symbol. Their
work has become a monument to
his memory.
The disease is unpredictable. In
1943 the entire state of North
Carolina reported only 81 cases,
four of them in this county. The
following year the county total had
risen to nine while the total for
the state had leaped to 859 report
ed cases.
Figures on polio show so per