Eric Kimani was in South Africa on Foundation business last week, but it was his talks on recruiting new members, with which Rotary has been hugely successful in East African countries, that drew the most attention.
Eric is the Endowment and Major Donor Advisor for Zone 20 and came to proselytise about giving to the Foundation, the main reason for his visit.
He used his time here to also speak about how he had left his original club in Kenya after having been District Governor (the first black man in his district to fill the post) to eventually go on a recruitment drive and start new clubs.
He was the first District Governor in the 95 years of Rotary in Kenya. In those days Rotary membership there was 60% white, 35% Indian and 5% black.
"It's now 95% black," he said.
He spoke at the Rotary Club of Rosebank meeting last Friday and again at a function at the Sligcher home last Sunday before traveling back to Nairobi.
To recruit the right kind of people, four clubs in whose creation he has been involved, have grouped together to set up a pre-membership training course. Applicants must attend at least four of eight training sessions. By the time prospective members are ready to join, there is very little fallout because they have been told in no uncertain terms what is expected of them in terms of contributing both financially and in practice.
Before they actually join they have to pay their dues for the first 6 months and attend a number of regular club meetings as a visitor. They need to be introduced by a fellow Rotarian and must also sit down to a fireside chat before being inducted.
Eric, a member of the Rotary Club of Nairobi Muthaiga North, says one of the new clubs has more than 90 members, another has over 50 members and the other two are also thriving.
As we were leaving on Sunday, I said to PDG Eric: I've heard you speak twice in a few days and I would still like to know more.
Ever the salesman for the Rotary Foundation, he replied: "So you are happy with what you received. Now let's talk about what you can give ..."
The Rotary Foundation depends in large part on donations from Rotarians and without that, there would be fewer global grants and fewer financial support for doing good in the world.
He revealed that he and his wife had pledged $250 000 to the Foundation, making them members of the Arch Klumpf Society and spent a great deal of time during both sessions explaining the many different ways of giving.
At the meeting last week President Ian Widdop announced that the board had decided at its latest meeting to try to pull in as many views as possible on four broad fronts.
These are: Member engagement, led by Joan Sainsbury and Linda Vink to provide guidance not only in the case of new members, but also existing members. Please volunteer to join this and the other three discussions.
The second front is Fundraising and Programmes and Projects, championed by PP Judy Sligcher and Gavin Atkins. They will discuss how to decide on initiatives to follow and revisit the New Dawn focus on Children in Need.
The third discussion will involve Communication Channels and Ian Widdop and I will tackle that with the help of other members. It will involve discussions and protocol around Zoom, social media and the image of the club.
Julian Nagy and Joan Donet will lead a debate on Re-energising the Club Strategy set up by Julian in the pre-Covid times
Remember: Please remember to fill out a My School application form for Woolworths. We need a minimum of 50 completed forms by the end of the month before Woolworths will recognise the club as a beneficiary and at the last count were far short. Each member of the club should supply at least one form. Joan Donet has the details.
In the Coming Weeks: The speaker this week is Prof Dries Veldhuizen of Unisa and a member of the Rotary e-Club of Southern Africa, who will be speaking on the Rotary February theme of Peace and Conflict Prevention/Resolution.
The meeting on 23 February has been set aside for the induction of seven new members, the latest being Ivone Vosloo, who was introduced to the club by Karlien Kruger. The 23rd happens to be Rotary's 117th birthday. An outside venue is under discussion, so watch this space.
Looking ahead, Karlien Kruger will be in the hot seat as interim president for March. Gavin Atkins sees duty in April, Helene Bramwell in May and Linda Vink in June, after which Julian Nagy takes over as president for 2022/2023.
A Thought for the Week: Those who put out the people's eyes, reproach them for their blindness. - John Milton (1608 - 1674)
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