My Passion For Growing Rotary

By Caroline Njiru

One On One with PDG Eric Kimani

August is Membership and New Club development month and who better to hear from than dedicated campaigner of growing Rotary than Past District Governor (PDG) Eric Kimani. In addition to years of dedicated service to Rotary and selfless giving to the Foundation, Kimani has also brought hundreds of members to the Rotary family. We spoke to him about his passion for growing Rotary and how he gets it done.

About PDG Eric Kimani

PDG Eric Kimani is an Entrepreneur, attorney of law, fellow certified public accountant (FCPAK) and business leader of repute having founded his own companies and run some public companies such as KTDA Ltd and Sameer Africa Ltd as Chief Executive Officer. Together with his wife Margaret, he runs the Palmhouse Foundation, a very successful education trust. He is also a published author and a sought-after motivational and inspirational speaker. He a recipient of the Moran of the Order of the Burning Spear (MBS) by His Excellency the President of Kenya for service to community in 2011 and holds an LLB (Laws) degree from the University of London. He is currently serving as Rotary Endowment and Major Gifts Advisor (EMGA) of Region 28 of Zone 22, 2021-24.

Kimani is a member of the Rotary Club of Muthaiga North and a Paul Harris Society member. He has been a Rotarian for 31 years and has served as a past president of the Rotary Club of Nairobi North and past District Governor of District 9200. During his stint as District Governor in 2012/13, (which at the time consisted of Kenya, Uganda Tanzania and Eritrea) he grew the District with the formation of a record 21 new clubs and led a record fund raising for the Rotary Foundation.

Growing Membership

Looking back, why did you join Rotary?

PDG Kimani : My original reason was to serve society on a structured basis and network with high net-worth individuals. Looking back I stayed Rotary for many additional things

Did you find what you were looking for?

PDG Kimani: I found more than I bargained for- I found Friendship; fellowship, family and fun. I found diversity of ideas; I found opportunity to know and discover the world; I found a new and superior lifestyle.

You have accomplished a great deal in growing Rotary. Please share your story of what you accomplished and how you accomplished this feat.

PDG Kimani: I would challenge anyone in my Rotary region who thinks he/she has brought more people to Rotary than I have! Every year I introduce people to Rotary in my club and many other clubs. Many are unknown to me too. Many confess my inspiration while I have never met them. I speak about Rotary to practically anyone I meet who is not one.

Since COVID-19 in 2020 I discovered a better way. I led the way to formulate a formal and structured training to those who wish to join Rotary. We organize 1 hour training session for about 8 weeks and each prospective member must attend at least 4. There are other requirements too. Many join while some make an informed choice to not join or delay the joining. This is how we have grown my club from 35 to 82 members! This is how we formed the Rotary of Ridgeways now with 81 members and this is how we formed the Rotary club of Samawati with nearly 50 members! Last month we began a new cohort training with the Rotary Clubs of Ridgeways, Samawati, Gachie and my club, RC Nairobi Muthaiga North.

What was your motivation?

PDG Kimani: I want more people to experience the abundant way of life that Rotary has given me!

Did you face any challenges and if so how did you overcome them?

PDG Kimani: There are club members who argue against growth and give all manner of reasons including the fact that Rotary is no longer attractive yet they are still members! Some even quote members I personally introduced and they soon left! I work on the principle behind a saying in my community that “the eyes of watching and croaking frogs do not stop cows from drinking to their fill”. I ignore these noises with great success.

What advice would you share with Rotarians who want to maximize on their Rotary experience?

PDG Kimani: Immerse yourself into Rotary! Like many things, what you give is what you get. You give much you get much back.

COVID-19 has brought a major opportunity to grow Rotary and all its attendant benefits. Those who open their eyes to this opportunity will reap big in both growth and the many personal benefits that Rotary bring our way-fun, fellowship, friendships and many more!

PDG Eric Kimani during a visit to a Rotary Club

PDG Eric Kimani is the Immediate past Regional Rotary Foundation Coordinator Zone 20A (EN) 2016-19 and has served on the RI Council on Legislation representative 2013-15 and 2016-19. Additionally he was a member of the RI Pandemic Task force and the AKS Trustee Circle in 2020.

He has many other Rotary achievements including:

Attending 17 physical Rotary International Conventions
Aide to Past RI President Rick King in 2013-14 & Past RI Director Steven Synder April 2017 to our District conferences

RI President’s Representative to District 5340, San Diego, USA in 2016; to D9220 in 2018 and D9210 in 2019

Training Leader at the Governor Elects Training Seminars in 2016, 2017, and 2018 in Accra, Harare and Lagos.

Trainer at Various Zone Institutes and General Trainer at Sharm El Sheikh 2019

Trainer/Facilitator at various Regional Leaders Training
A Facilitator at Rotary Regional Leaders Training Institute (RLTI) 2019 and Lead Facilitator for RLTI 2020.