2026 Lone Star PETS Speakers

Olayinka Hakeem Babalola, a member of the Rotary Club of Trans Amadi, Nigeria, has been selected by the Board of Directors to become Rotary International’s president for 2026-27. His term will begin on 1 July 2026.

Babalola began his Rotary journey in 1984 as a Rotaractor. He joined the Rotary Club of Trans Amadi 10 years later. His leadership roles include serving as district governor (2011-12), RI vice president (2019-20), and member of the RI Board (2018-20). He was also an active leader and participant in RI committees such as the End Polio Now Countdown to History Campaign Committee (2017-23) and the Nigeria National PolioPlus Committee (2013-present, adviser 2016-present).

 

Babalola received a university degree in engineering in 1988. He worked for 25 years in the oil and gas industry, holding senior positions in Shell PLC. He is the founder of two companies: Riviera Technical Services Ltd., an oil and gas infrastructure delivery company, and Lead and Change Consulting, an executive coaching and organizational performance advisory group.

 

Babalola’s professional affiliations include the Nigerian Society of Engineers, the Institute of Safety Professionals of Nigeria, and the Association of Change Management Professionals. He is a member of Jericho Businessmen Club, an organization in his birth city of Ibadan that provides input to governments on economic and social policy.

Babalola and his wife, Preba, live in the city of Port Harcourt. He supports The Rotary Foundation with a named endowment and as an Arch Klumph Society member. A trustee of ShelterBox UK, he is a recipient of the Africa Centennial Heroes Award, the Regional Service Award for a Polio-Free World, the RI Service Above Self Award, and The Rotary Foundation Citation for Meritorious Service.

 

The president of Rotary International serves a one-year term, presiding over the Board of Directors and providing inspirational leadership for the organization. As the spokesperson for the global network, the president visits clubs around the world to promote Rotary's values and represent the organization at major events. Rotary chooses its president from members who have demonstrated extensive leadership experience within Rotary, including service as a club president, district governor, and member of the Board.

Kathryn Fahy has been a Rotarian since 2006 and is a member and Past President of the Iowa Great Lakes Rotary Club in Spirit Lake, Iowa. She is a former Rotary Ambassadorial Scholar (1997 Canberra, Australia) and is a Major Donor, Paul Harris Society and Bequest Society member. Kathy has served on the District 5970 Youth Exchange Committee, District Fellowship Committee, Alumni Committee and Ambassadorial Scholars Committee.  She was selected in September 2014 as one of 32 young professionals in the United States to attend the inaugural Rotary Young Professional Summit in Chicago. From that experience, Kathy was part of the birth of Rollin’ with Rotary – an endeavor to bring attention to local and international needs by doing massive Random Acts of Kindness and creating large scale community service projects. In October 2015, she was invited back to Chicago to be a part of the Rotary Young Professionals Advisory Council.

 

Following the completion of her year as District Governor of Rotary District 5970 (2014-15), she was the Zone 28 Rotary Coordinator (2016-17), Zone 29 Rotary Public Image Coordinator (2017-20), a Training Leader at Rotary International Assembly (2019-20), and International Assembly Seminar Trainer (2021-23). She also held the position of Marketing Chair for HANWASH (Haiti National Clean Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Initiative) from 2020-2022. Kathy was also a member of the 2024 Singapore Convention Committee (serving as Promotions Team Chair), a WASH Major Gifts Initiative Committee, and the co-chair of the Rotary International Communications Committee. Kathy recently completed serving as the chair of the 2025 Zones 25B & 29 Institute in Prior Lake, Minnesota.

 

Kathy has owned and operated K Brand Marketing, a marketing consulting business, since 2006. In addition to managing investors and operators for Farmland Opportunity, LLC, she is an active partner in her family grain farm (DoKare Farms) in north central Iowa and frequently drives the tractor during the planting and harvest seasons.