Opus Dei

Opus Dei was founded on 2nd of October 1928 in Madrid, Spain by St. Josemaria Escriva.

Its message is twofold: firstly, that we are all called to be saints, to be holy, to be like God our Father. Secondly, that the way He wants us to be holy is by doing our ordinary, day-to-day work, tasks and duties – whether in the office, in the factory, on the farm, on the sports field, at home, at the hair salon or the golf course – as humanly perfectly as possible for the sake of helping people around us improve.

On 25th August 1958, Opus Dei set foot in Kenya when St. Josemaria suggested to a couple of young professionals that perhaps they could begin a school in that East African protectorate that would admit people of all races and walks of life.

On 26th June 1975, Monsignor Josemaria Escriva passed away suddenly in his residence in Rome. He was succeeded by his close aide and confidant Fr. Alvaro del Portillo.

On 28th November 1982, Pope St. John Paul II officially established Opus Dei as a personal prelature of the Catholic Church. A personal prelature is an institutional structure of the Roman Catholic Church which comprises a prelate (usually a bishop), clergy (i.e. priests) and laity (single, married and widowed) who undertake specific pastoral activities. The prelate and his clergy exist to serve the laity. Unlike dioceses which cover geographical territories, personal prelatures take charge of persons as regards some objectives regardless of where they live. Thus the term personal. The Church uses a similar arrangement in attending to its faithful whose professional work is to serve in the armed forces.

On 6th October 2002, Pope St. John Paul II in a ceremony at St. Peter’s Basilica, declared that Josemaria Escriva had lived a holy life of heroic virtue and was officially recognised as a saint. From then on, the founder of Opus Dei has been referred to as St. Josemaria. Many people the world over however still refer to him

Our History

Hodari was begun back in 1971 by a group of Nairobi parents who were interested in seeing their sons use their free time after school, on weekends and in the holidays more constructively. Together, they came up with the idea of a boys’ club where their sons could learn various skills, hone their talents, foster friendships, grow in piety and mature in character. For 10 years, the club held its activities in a room allowed it by the then Strathmore College in its Lavington campus.

In 1982, the Ndoto Road clubhouse was finally bought and refurbished.Now Hodari had a place of its very own to call home! With all the senior and junior boys jostling and running around in the Ndoto Road clubhouse, it soon became clear that more space was needed… another house or an expansion was required to accommodate all the boys and activities. Ten years later, in 1992, the opportunity made itself available.The junior boys would have a place all to themselves! Located at the junction of El Molo Drive and James Gichuru Road in Nairobi’s Lavington area, the new plot provided the ideal space for the younger boys to shout, run, climb, chase and scream to no end. This house is now fondly referred to as “H2” while its older sibling on Ndoto Road, “H1”.

On these two properties, more than 40 years later, Hodari continues to organise activities for boys from across and beyond Nairobi, in the light of the dream of that first group of parents.The actual day-to-day running of the club activities has over the years been entrusted to a group of young men who have the zest and energy to match the boys; the parents – especially fathers – also give a hand where their experience and expertise is needed such as in budgeting, arranging for cultural visits, advising the Organising Committee etc. The spiritual and moral formation of parents, instructors and the boys of Hodari was in its turn entrusted to Opus Dei, a personal prelature of the Catholic Church.

The premises and property of Hodari Club is held in trust by Imara Educational Foundation. Imara is a non-profit charitable body incorporated under the Companies Act of Kenya, as a Company Limited by Guarantee and without share capital.The Foundation aims at promoting social welfare by:

• Providing material facilities to encourage and establishing training and educational projects in Kenya,
• Organising courses, seminars, study groups and other suitable cultural activities,
• Relieving poverty and distress by providing bursaries and training for needy students, and
• promoting work-camps to help the less favoured strata of society.

Vision & Mission

Our Mission

The Junior Club aspires to become a family club where parents, especially fathers, are actively involved in the maturing of their sons and in the development of the Club.

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Our Vision

To assist parents in forming their young sons into young men of high standards in academics, piety, culture and sports through the practice of good habits and of work well done.