Number of Polio Vaccines Increases to over 150,000

On Tuesday, December 18, Bruce Templeton spoke at a Rotary event where Polio Plus received cash donations and pledges of $11,000 including one for $5,000 from Transcontinental presented by Charlie Stacey.

With these additional commitments, the total raised by Bruce’s efforts and The Man in the Red Suit now comes to $31,350.  When that figure is matched by the  Government of Canada and the Gates Foundation there will be enough funding for 156,750 children to receive vaccinations. Thank you to all who’ve helped and supported this initiative!

Bruce Templeton arranges for Santa to accompany Premier Dunderdale at school reading

Santa and Premier Kathy Dunderdale reading to students (Photo Credit: The Telegram)

Thanks to Santa’s assistant on the ground in Newfoundland and Labrador, arrangements were made to have ‘the man in the red suit’ accompany Premier Kathy Dunderdale when she went to read to children at Roncalli Elementary this morning.

Of course the chosen title was T’was the Night Before Christmas, you can take a look at the coverage provided by The Telegram here!

Santa Claus, premier visit students at Roncalli
Published on December 20, 2012
By Louis Power

Kids at Roncalli Elementary school in St. John’s had two special visitors Thursday morning: Santa Claus and Premier Kathy Dunderdale. After Santa danced Gangnam style with the students, the kids listened as the premier read from the classic Christmas tale “The Night Before Christmas.” The children laughed as Santa mimed the story… continue reading

Bruce Templeton, HitsFM, & Provincial Airlines help some lucky youth meet Santa at the North Pole

Following the annual tradition, Bruce Templeton helped some lucky youth meet with Santa at the North Pole, thanks to some help from local radio station 99.1 HitsFM and Provincial Airlines.

Each child got to ask Santa one question before getting a special gift. One youth asked Santa to do the Gangnam Style dance with her and another asked why Santa doesn’t use moose over reindeer to pull the sleigh. Take a look!

CBC’s As It Happens has Bruce Templeton as a guest

Bruce Templeton spoke with Carol Off, host of CBC Radio’s As It Happens about his time assisting Santa and of course, his memoir The Man in the Red Suit.  You can check out the interview in block three of the program by clicking here. Once on the program’s website, click “Listen” at the top right and scroll down to find the final segment of the show.

Santa appears on Out of the Fog

Santa’s assistant, Bruce Templeton, helped Out of the Fog book Santa himself for a two hour call in show on December 6! Check out this photo of the man in the red suit himself on the set with host Erin Sulley!

Santa on the set of Out of the Fog with host Erin Sulley

The Man in the Red Suit to provide Polio Vaccine to 50,000 children

Bruce Templeton’s good friend, Santa, visiting the NICU at the Janeway checking out The Man in the Red Suit

Polio is a disease that cannot be cured but it can be controlled. There is a Newfoundlander, Dr. Bruce Alyward who, since 1998, has been responsible for overseeing and coordinating all polio eradication activities across the World Health Organization’s Global Polio Eradication Initiative partnership. Rotary International is committed to the irradiation of polio and now working along with professionals in the three remaining countries where polio is a concern. They are Afghanistan, Pakistan and Nigeria.

Bruce Templeton, author of The Man in the Red Suit said that he would take his revenue from the first printing and use it toward Rotary Polio Plus. A company heard of this offer and said that they would match his contribution to Rotary. But the story does not end there.

Every dollar donated to Polio Plus will be matched with $2. The Government of Canada and the Gates Foundation will match Rotarian donations to make it a 3:1 donation. There is a $1 million limit each from the Government of Canada and the Gates Foundation. The match is for donations made between June 1, 2012 and March 31, 2013.

So think of this: as you are sitting in your chair reading The Man in the Red Suit,  somewhere in the world, professionals are asking a child to stick out their tongue for a few drops of Polio vaccine.

The cost of the vaccine is about 60 cents per child and now, because you bought a book, it can happen for 50,000 children.