FRENCH
PHILANTHROPY
WORDS: Amy Bell
PICTURES: Whitney Patton
As Vice President of Willis Smith
Const ruct ion in Lakewood
Ranch, Kim French definitely
has a passion for building. However,
his enthusiasm for architecture reaches
far beyond brick and mortar structures.
French is also determined to build a
stronger community.
“I think it goes back to my family upbringing
and always being around folks who were
getting involved,” he reflects. “I saw
early on how good it felt to be a part of
something focused on making things
better, and I was hooked!”
Hooked, indeed. Over the years, French
has gotten involved with numerous groups,
from business alliances to non-profit
organizations. However, the array of
causes he supports all have one thing in
common: they are local to Manatee County.
“I tell people that we get bombarded with
the large-scale international and national
issues of the day,” he remarks. “But there
are plenty of local issues we can get
involved in and actually have a big impact
by utilizing our combined community
groups and people resources right here.
The more you get into these things, the
more inspired you become!”
TWO SPECIAL
ORGANIZATIONS
Although French has supported a range of
causes over the years, he currently holds
two organizations near and dear to his
heart: the Manatee Education Foundation
(MEF) and Lakewood Ranch Business
Alliance (LWRBA.) In fact, French is 2018
Chairman of the Board for LWRBA, and
he sits on the board of MEF.
“Two great organizations for sure,” he
enthuses. “I have been involved in both
certainly gotten more satisfaction from
both than I put in.”
French says he always tries to choose
that match his interests, and both of these
“The Manatee Educational Foundation
has provided so much suppor t for
the educational community over the
years, and being a part of that from the
remarks. Founded in 1988, the MEF is
the only foundation solely dedicated to
pre-kindergarten through 12th grade
public education.
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