Rising Stars: Meet Kelley Khoury

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kelley Khoury.

Hi Kelley, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I grew up in a small town in Vermont and stayed in-state to complete my undergraduate degrees in Computer Science and Business at Saint Michael’s College. I moved to Superior, Colorado right after college and started a job at Epsilon where I worked full time and completed my MBA. Almost 15 years later, I am still employed with Epsilon, working remotely full time as a Principal BSA. I met my now-husband in Superior, CO over 12 years ago where we both lived for several years. We relocated to Chicago, IL for a few years and got married in 2019 but our love of Colorado led us back to Louisville just over a year ago. We currently live in DELO and are grateful to be a part of such a wonderful community. Together we’ve always made helping others a priority, from donating money to volunteering our time. Every Christmas we sponsor a large family (he was one of 4 boys so he understands the struggle larger families can face) instead of exchanging gifts. It was this mutual passion for helping others that led us to create Operation Birthday in 2021.

Operation Birthday is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that is founded on the principle that all children deserve a birthday celebration. Our mission is to ensure each child feels special on their birthday by providing parents in need with birthday items they are not able to afford.

My husband, Tony, and I discussed ways we could give back and have our own positive impact on this world. We felt very blessed within our own lives and wanted to pay it forward. We wanted to provide a service that wasn’t widely available across the US and aligned with our own personal charitable work. We quickly realized Operation Birthday was the perfect way to give back and help fill an existing need. Below provides the history on how the Operation Birthday concept originated.

My niece Shelby-Ann was born in 2015. Living across the country, I was extremely grateful I was able to travel to each birthday celebration. In 2018, when Shelby-Ann was old enough to understand sharing and giving, I started a unique birthday tradition. We would shop for kids’ birthday items (cake, frosting, sprinkles, cupcake wrappers & candles) and then donate these items to her local food bank. We would talk about how fortunate we were, and I would explain how other little kids were not as lucky. She would help shop for the items, carry them into the food bank, and then she would explain to the volunteers why we were donating these items.

It is a tradition I look forward to continuing throughout her childhood and I am hopeful through this non-profit I can increase our impact so more children can have the birthday they deserve. I am passionate about our mission which is why all donations go towards Birthday Kits and directly impact a child. My husband and I personally cover all fixed overhead costs and volunteer our time.

www.operationbirthday.org
@operationbirthday2

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
We both work full time and starting this non-profit was exciting and scary at the same time. I was worried about the community not having a need for our service and receiving zero requests, while also worrying that we’d have too many requests and have to turn people away due to a lack of funding. I know it would be heartbreaking if we could not help a parent in need provide their child a Birthday celebration.

Learning how to operate a nonprofit that stays true to its mission and core beliefs has been a challenging experience. As an individual, I am able to make decisions on the fly and be flexible when I choose. As the co-founder and a member of the board of directors, I have learned that all decisions for the non-profit need to be evaluated against our mission and core beliefs, this at times has limited our ability to be flexible and presented its own challenges. Our Birthday Kits are a perfect example. It’s extremely important to us that the Birthday Kits remain customizable, so each parent has the ability to provide a unique Birthday celebration tailored to their child. This limits our ability to bulk order or accept a wide range of donations, however it truly gives each child an experience that is unique to them. Every item in a Birthday Kit is added with purpose, so while we appreciate and accept donated items that are unopened, we remain eco-friendly by only providing items that have been requested to ensure there is no added waste. My favorite Birthday Kits have been Batman themed party supplies with baby doll presents for a little girl and rainbow unicorn themed party supplies with anime clothes for a teenage boy. I know that as we continue to grow, we will be challenged in new ways, however by remaining true to our mission and core beliefs we will be able to work through those challenges and continue to make children feel special on their birthday.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Education is extremely important to me and my background has allowed me to do it all for our non-profit. I created the business plan, built and maintain the website, and complete all marketing and financing tasks. This has allowed Operation Birthday to minimize operating costs so each donation goes directly towards Birthday Kits. I’m very passionate not only about Operation Birthday, but about helping others. I believe you should practice thankfulness and am truly grateful I am able to spend my free time helping others and paying it forward.

My husband, Tony Khoury graduated from UIC in 2005 with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering and has served on the Richard and Loan Hill Department of Biomedical Engineering’s advisory board since 2018 as well as Operation Birthday’s board. He is an executive vice president with Project Farma, a precision medicine company that develops next-generation medicines that save people’s lives. Tony also is involved in several small business ventures with his family, including a ramen restaurant named Furious Spoon, and a specialty cocktail bar, Pink Squirrel. Tony has been extremely supportive of my vision, is always available to provide his guidance and is a main reason why I am able to invest so much into Operation Birthday’s mission.

We have an additional three Board Members who donate their time and have played a large role in Operation Birthday’s success. Their unique background and passion for our mission has been instrumental. I am extremely thankful for Shelley Wilcox, Marie Khoury and Jessica Leszczynski – three very strong and influential women in my life.

Lastly, we are very lucky to have a strong support system within our personal network. We will forever be grateful for the friends, family and even strangers who support our mission daily. We know it would not be possible without their support.

Do you have any advice for those just starting out?
I do believe in positive thinking and that your mindset is key to any outcome. One of my favorite quotes is “If you think you can or cannot – you’re right”. You will accomplish exactly what you believe you will. I, like many others, was worried about failing, so I would challenge myself… “what does failure mean? We only help 20 kids?” It would remind me that the real failure would be not trying at all. My husband and I are big basketball fans – so I have to end with our favorite quote that can be applied to the sport and life “You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take”.

Contact Info:

• Email: leadership@operationbirthday.org
• Website: www.operationbirthday.org
• Instagram: @operationbirthday2
• Facebook: @operationbirthday2