Kelly attributes that increased involvement to the leadership that precedes him at NLBMDA, specifically citing the work of Hancock; 2004–2005 chairman Sam Dunn, president of Dunn Lumber in Daytona Beach, Fla.; and 2001–2002 chairman Gerry Boland, vice president of Louisville, Ky.–based Boland Maloney Lumber. In particular, Kelly says the government affairs work of Boland has always inspired him in his efforts to get others involved in government affairs and on board with issues like ISFA that he views as critical to the collective success of the industry. “I’m really looking forward to getting ISFA going,” Kelly says. “It’s not going to happen overnight, but it has given everyone a rallying point and has the dealers galvanized, and we are going to keep working at it. I’ve already told everyone at home not to expect to see me around the yard for several months.”
Bringing It Home That shouldn’t be too much of a problem for folks around Covington, who are used to a Steve Kelly who is busy with KBMA, the regional HBA, or sponsoring virtually every school and church fund-raiser, golf outing, year-book project, and scoreboard-advertising program. “Anything and everything we will participate in terms of supporting the local community,” Kelly says, adding that one of his favorites is The Point ARC of Northern Kentucky, an organization dedicated to providing opportunities to persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities, allowing them to reach their highest potential educationally, vocationally, and socially. Kelly first became involved with The Point 12 years ago at the request of a builder-customer whose son was living at one of The Point’s residential centers, and has been involved ever since, currently sitting on the organization’s board of ambassadors.
“Steve is one of our top 10 donors and contributors,” says The Point president Judi Gerding. “Our success is directly because of people like Steve. He is someone we can always count on.”
In addition to sponsoring The Point’s annual men’s golf outing and participating in the organization’s “Joy to the World” holiday celebration, Gerding points to Kelly’s contributions to The Point’s first capital pledge campaign, which is enabling the construction of new group homes. “We recently went down to Kelly Bros. to select material for just a small kitchen addition, and Steve told me to pick out whatever I wanted and to not get low-end material,” she says. “We have six new group homes coming up, and to know that Steve and Kelly Bros. are there for us, it’s just awesome.”
Kelly says the pleasure is all his. Like many philanthropists and public service leaders, he says the personal payback on donated time, money, and resources is always far greater than what was originally contributed. “When I see people living at a group home at The Point and I know that Kelly Bros. made that possible, it is the greatest feeling in the world,” he says. “It’s then that I realize how we can truly make a difference.”
The same holds true for Kelly’s contributions to industry associations. Despite devoting more than 12 years of leadership to KBMA and NLBMDA, Kelly feels the knowledge and best practices he gleans from just networking and visiting other dealers far outstrips the value he personally provides to the industry, and he’s looking forward to the travel required by assuming the chair’s position at NLBMDA. “A lot of the success here at Kelly Bros. is due to that type of networking and fellowship,” Kelly says. “You always come back with great ideas, good knowledge, and you learn more than you ever realize. No matter what I do, I don’t think I can ever teach them as much as they teach me.”
One thing Kelly does hope to teach is his keen interest and adroit skills in industry politics, and he believes he has found at least one apt pupil in Brandon Coppage, the son of Kelly’s partner at Kelly Bros. Coppage was a 2003 recipient of the Blair Collings summer internship at NLBMDA, a program that allows an intern to spend eight weeks in Washington, D.C., to attend industry-related coalition meetings, observe the U.S. Congress, write issue summaries, and conduct other research pertinent to congressional or federal agency issues while also being involved in daily NLBMDA operations. “I try to encourage by example, I think that is the best way to do it. People will see it, and they will either be motivated by it or not,” Kelly says. “I’d really like to get Brandon more involved and see him follow me through some of this stuff, at the very least to have a good travel partner next year.”
