At HonorBridge, our chief officers don’t simply step into leadership roles at the top. Every single one of them, including Chief Operating Officer (COO) Kim Koontz, has grown within our organization over decades.
“When I started in organ and tissue donation I actually started with the NC Eye Bank, which is now Miracles in Sight,” said Kim. “I took a job talking to families about cornea donation, and I just fell in love with the work. Because we frequently partnered with HonorBridge on referrals and data, I worked with Lloyd Jordan, the former CEO, and he spoke to me about taking the next step in my career. In 2004, I came to Honorbridge as a tissue recovery coordinator. I wanted to see what it was like to be in the operating room and see a different aspect of donation. I fell in love with it!”
Since then, Kim has worn several hats at HonorBridge, from call center manager to director of tissue services. Each position, she says, gave her a broader perspective and prepared her to see “the big picture” in her current role.
“It took me a while to apply as COO, because I’m not always one to think I’m the perfect person for the job,” Kim admits. “As I sat down and wrote my cover letter, I realized I was a great applicant. I can remember the day Danielle, our CEO, offered me the job. I said, ‘Are you sure you’re not crazy?!’ That was 2017, and I’ve been at it ever since!”
Today, as COO, Kim guides HonorBridge operations with a focus on both the mission and the people it impacts.
“I look at where we could go and what we could do,” said Kim. “I do some research, analyze data, and partner with other leaders about opportunities for the organization. For me, it’s about building a foundation and vision and helping remove barriers for folks to do their day-to-day job.”
Kim has a history of embracing and driving change long before her role as COO, starting with the creation of the Donor Services Center (DSC).
“We used to use an outside company to manage all of our referrals,” said Kim. “Eventually, a position opened up to build and manage our own call center from scratch. I interviewed and was hired for the job. It was a very unique and fun experience. I had to hire my positions, find a space for us, develop policies, and find ways to integrate a brand-new department into the organization. It was a lot of fun!”
Kim has a unique ability to see what many might view as daunting as an exciting opportunity for growth. This mindset has served her well throughout her career at HonorBridge and earned recognition in the broader organ and tissue donation community.
“Kim approaches challenges with both thoughtful analysis and genuine enthusiasm, always striving to support her colleagues with appreciation,” said President & CEO Danielle Bumarch. “Her exceptional talent has also been recognized nationally, as evidenced by her selection to chair the Operations and Safety Committee of the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network (OPTN).”
Although Kim has achieved significant professional success in the world of donation and transplantation, personal recognition has never been her motivation. For her, the work, especially in tissue donation, has always been about saving lives.
“For tissue donation, I always feel like people talk about lifesaving vs. life-enhancing, but tissue donation IS lifesaving,” said Kim. “Every aspect of it is lifesaving. It doesn’t have to be a heart to be lifesaving. Every graft that those families and those patients get is lifesaving to them.”
Throughout her career, Kim has been moved by many stories of donor family members and recipients, but one in particular stood out.
“Johnathan Nauta received North Carolina’s first abdominal wall transplant,” Kim said. “Hearing him talk at a press conference about how something as simple as a belly button could make such a meaningful difference was amazing. His donor’s parents had lost their child under terrible circumstances, but they still chose to help in whatever way they could. That’s the moment you realize that families are so much stronger than you’d even realize, when you see how their light shines through. I don’t know if I would have had the courage to make the same decision, but they made it with no regrets. And it was just perfect.”
Reflecting on her almost 22 years at HonorBridge, Kim Koontz has seen tremendous growth across the organization. Kim believes that with every step forward, the team will continue to improve together.
“The partnerships and innovation that we have are really driving our future,” she says. “No one here is afraid to innovate or push the envelope and try something new. We learn so much more from our failures than we do from our successes. I think Melinda Locklear, our Chief Support Officer, uses the phrase ‘fail fast, fail forward.’ And that’s just it—it’s about trying things and being on the cutting edge. My favorite thing to say is, ‘the only people who aren’t making mistakes are the ones who aren’t doing anything!’”
Kim has always been passionate about meeting people where they are and finding ways to make a positive impact on communities. That interest inspired her to pursue a master’s degree in public health from UNC Greensboro, a decision that has benefitted her throughout her career.
“Many people go back for an MBA or an administration degree, but Public Health has always been my favorite,” Kim explains. “Doing outreach, seeing if it’s effective, and connecting with people feeds both my love of working with others and my interest in analyzing data.”
During her time at HonorBridge, Kim has also been busy raising two children, now 17 and 13 years old. This year, she and her husband, her college sweetheart, will celebrate their 26th wedding anniversary. When she is not focused on shaping the future of HonorBridge, Kim enjoys reading, playing tennis (and if she could spend an hour with anyone in the world, it would be Serena Williams), refinishing furniture, or planning a getaway to the beach near her hometown of Edenton, NC.
“I just like to do creative things,” she says. “I like to paint, and I’m an Audible junkie—I listen to Audible all the time in my car! And I’m always looking for a new book.”
As she reflects on both her career and her life, Kim shares one final thought.
“I guess the biggest thing I’d want to leave with everybody is that donation—both tissue and organ donation—is not always easy work. The people who succeed in this field are the ones who make it their life’s work. I want to commend everyone who is part of the process, from donor families, our staff, to hospital staff. It’s like the ultimate teamwork; it takes a full village to make it happen.”