Rotary Club combats vaccine misinformation with Halloween comics
October 26, 2026 at 4:29 AM
The Rotary Club of Fort Erie is doing its part to combat vaccine misinformation by giving away a comic book illustrated by local high school students, with a full page in each copy about polio.
Club members gave out the books from noon to 3 p.m. on Saturday at the sixth annual Rotary Zombie Invasion, where Greater Fort Erie Secondary School drama students will act out zombie scenes during Bridgeburg’s annual Truck or Treat on Jarvis Street–a free Halloween event where children trick-or-treat at local businesses and climb onto construction trucks on display.
“Believing that vaccines are some sort of conspiracy theory and avoiding measles shots will result in young children getting measles when they shouldn’t,” said Rotary Club of Fort Erie president Vincent Quon.
Greater Fort Erie Secondary School students taking part in last year’s Rotary Zombie Invasion on Jarvis Street. Credit: Matthew Vandervoet | FacebookCanada lost its official measles-free status in November 2025 after the disease spread without a break for more than a year, according to the Public Health Agency of Canada.
The club usually sends at least $1,500 US from the comic book’s ad revenue to Rotary International’s polio fund, which pays for polio shots for children in those two countries, Quon said.
This year’s 28-page comic book combines local business ads with student comic strips and a page on polio’s history, including the iron lungs that once breathed for paralyzed patients.
Quon said this year’s art students could not meet the deadline, so the club reprinted past student work as a “best of” edition.
The idea to sponsor the student comic started when the club first handed families a one-page polio flyer at the original Rotary Zombie Invasion six years ago.
“We thought, what a waste,” said Quon. “Families probably skimmed the flyer and maybe threw it away into the recycle bin.”
Club members handed out more than 250 copies of the comic book at last year’s event.
The club has given a $500 drama arts scholarship to a graduating Greater Fort Erie Secondary School student who helped with the zombie event in each of the past five years.
Quon said the club expects to award the next scholarship in June 2027.
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Andrew Hawlitzky
Andrew is a Niagara community journalist who has covered everything from local politics to annual festivals and breaking news. He works to make local news a platform where community voices lead the conversation. "If you don't like the news, go out and make some!"
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