Highland bakery Harry Gow and Inverness Rotary in massive cash boost for polio charity

An Inverness based Highland bakery has linked with a local rotary club to raise thousands of pounds for a polio charity.

Staff and customers at Harry Gow worked alongside Inverness Rotary Club to raise an impressive £5,000 to aid the fight against polio – with the donation rising to £15,000 thanks to a funding boost from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Sales of a special, purple-flowered vanilla cupcake at the bakery raised £4,300, with the rotary club raising an additional £700. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has matched and doubled the local total, with all proceeds donated to Polio Plus, which Harry Gow is supporting in association with Inverness Rotary Club.

Managing director David Gow said: “We have been blown away by the generosity of our customers and staff, who purchased our special cupcakes in their thousands. Polio is a very serious disease, and we are proud to have been asked by Inverness Rotary Club to support the effort to eradicate it worldwide.

“Despite everything that everyone is going through in 2020, it has been heart-warming to see Highland residents coming together to get behind such an important cause.”

Alan Nelson, senior vice-president of Inverness Rotary Club, added: “The public’s support of this campaign has been really wonderful. Polio Plus is an important charity for the Inverness Rotary Club, so we’re glad these cupcakes captured everyone’s imagination in the way they did.

“Harry Gow has a long history of supporting worthwhile causes, and we are incredibly grateful to the team and their customers for their donations.”

Although polio cases have steadily decreased worldwide, the virus still poses a threat. Affecting children under five, one in 200 infections leads to irreversible paralysis. According to the World Health Organisation, failure to eradicate polio could within a decade result in as many as 200,000 cases each year across the globe. While there is no cure for polio, vaccinating children can protect them for life.

Harry Gow has 18 stores spread across Inverness and the Highlands. Famous for its dream rings, the team prides itself on baking everything from scratch – from breads and cakes to icings and custards.

Inverness Rotary Club will celebrate its centenary in June 2021. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation is matching and doubling all funds raised by Rotary Clubs worldwide.

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