Canadian Dreamers: Ramesh Ferris, Polio Survivor

What do you know about polio? If you say, “Not much,” you are not alone. Poliomyelitis, a viral disease that affects the nervous system, has rarely been seen in Canada since the invention of the polio vaccine by Dr. Jonas Salk in the early 1950s.

In much of the rest of the world, however, polio remains a huge problem. In India, for example, 741 new cases of polio were reported in 2009, due to inadequate population vaccination campaigns. In addition, rehabilitation tools such as crutches are not available to many citizens in developing nations, whereas Canadians can access these resources easily through our universal healthcare system.

Ramesh Ferris is familiar with these social inequities. At the age of six months, Ferris acquired polio in his birth country, India, leading to paralysis of his legs. Unable to meet her son’s medical needs any longer, Ferris’ mother put him up for adoption. Around the same time, a family in Whitehorse, Yukon, of all places, was looking to adopt. Hence in 1982 Yukon’s first international adoption occurred and Ferris came to Canada, where he was offered surgeries, braces, and crutches. These allowed Ferris to begin walking at the age of three.

In the summer of 2002, Ferris returned to southern India to personally thank his mother for making such an important decision in his life. Growing up in Canada, Ferris had never met many polio survivors. In India, however, Ferris says it was quite common to see polio survivors on the streets. Ferris remembered feeling sad that these survivors had to rely on pieces of tire and sandals to “crawl around in the dirt [because they had not been] fortunate enough to receive a simple leg brace and crutches,” as he had been.

Upon his return to Canada, Ferris reflected on what he had seen in India, and became inspired to help fellow polio survivors around the world. But how? Ferris says it was the journeys of his heroes, Terry Fox and Rick Hansen, that inspired him to create “Cycle to Walk”, an initiative to hand-cycle across Canada to raise awareness and funds for polio eradication, education and rehabilitation.

Although he had never hand-cycled before, Ferris was determined to make his dream a reality. He trained and sought advice and support from those around him, including members of his church and community, Canadian Rotary Club members, and even Rick Hansen himself. All of these individuals helped Ferris begin his journey in Victoria, British Columbia on April 12, 2008 – the 53rd anniversary of Dr. Salk’s polio vaccine.

Over the 7140-kilometre trek, Ferris was touched by the generosity of Canadians, who gave of their time, food, houses, and money for the cause. Along the way, Ferris also participated in 350 media interviews and made over 200 presentations to schools, churches, and political officials. Ferris describes the experience as “the biggest physical and mental journey I have had to prepare for in my life…but never did it feel impossible.” On October 1, 2008, after raising over $310, 000 for “Cycle to Walk”, Ferris and his hand-cycle reached Cape Spear, Newfoundland and Labrador.

The journey, however, was not over. Ferris says that his dream was never about hand-cycling across Canada, although that was a powerful experience. “No, it’s about eradicating polio. It’s about helping the polio survivors around the world get out of the dirt and into braces, crutches, and wheelchairs.” A huge part of Ferris’ dream is sharing his experience with others and encouraging them to get involved. In his recently published book, Better than a cure: One man’s journey to free the world of polio, Ferris documents his cross-Canada trek and discusses polio eradication and rehabilitation efforts. Ferris even had the opportunity to share his message with Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II of England and Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper this past June at a royal garden party at Rideau Hall.

Many of us have big dreams, like Ferris, but how do we get them off the ground? When I asked Ferris to respond, he quoted another big dreamer, Dr. Jonas Salk, who said, “Hope lies in dreams, in imagination, and in the courage of those who dare to make dreams into reality.” Ferris dared. Will you?

Posted by Ranita Manocha

To learn more, please visit the following websites:
Cycle to Walk: http://www.cycletowalk.com
Global Polio Eradication Initiative: http://www.polioeradication.org

Know a Canadian with a big dream? Nominate him or her for our next Canadian Dreamer profile by contacting Ranita at rmanocha (at) alumni (dot) uwo (dot) ca.