Around the World: Flight to End Polio

Cousins Peter Teahen and John Ockenfels, piloted a single piston-engine airplane around the world in 2023 to raise awareness and money for Rotary’s End Polio Now program. The flight took 90-days, made 37 landings in 19 countries, and involved 24 fundraisers. Only 702 pilots in history have ever achieved this feat, and less than 270 are alive today! Both Peter and John are longtime Rotarians and members of the International Fellowship of Flying Rotarians. They are both recipients of Rotary’s two highest honors, “Service Above Self”, and the “Service Award for A Polio Free World”. As pilots, they have qualified for the prestigious Circumnavigator Diploma from the Federation Aeronautique Internationale. Peter and John departed Cedar Rapids, Iowa on May 5, 2023 in their 1977 Cessna T210M airplane, and successfully returned home 90-days later on July 30. Today Peter and John will share their powerful story of: “Around the World: Flight To End Polio”.