A Daughters love, and her fathers legacy

Shelley Breiner was destined to be an entrepreneur. Getting her start in Brooklyn, NY she has been through the ringer and come out on top. Shelley Breiner started her first company, an antique store in Lake Hopatcong, NJ. Shelley decided to name the company after her first born son, calling it JP’s Emporium. Shelley and Mark Breiner both longed to be closer to family so they moved back to Florida.

Moving back to Tampa in the mid 1980′s, Shelley Breiner assisted her husband Mark Breiner with a number of other business ventures. Furniture stores in the Tampa Bay area proved to be an outstanding business for Shelley Breiner. Shelley sold the Tampa location from her hospital bed while giving birth to twin girls.

When tragedy struck Shelley Breiner’s father David, she was there by his side. Being diagnosed with cancer in 1989, he fought the disease aggressively, enduring chemotherapy and many hospital visits until his passing in 1993.

Having always dreamed of helping sick children, the loss of her father served as a catalyst to follow her dream, and honor her father’s memory. Shelly was in awe of the courageous spirits of the children she encountered in the hospital when accompanying her father for his treatments. It was disheartening to learn that some of the children that were there one day, were not the next time she went with her father for treatments.

The path to Shelley’s dream of honoring her father’s legacy while also helping the children began to take shape as she discussed her plans with her family. With her family’s encouragement she explored the possibility of either supporting another charity or starting her own. After going through the due diligence process and conducting extensive research Shelley teamed up with Mark to start a charity for children battling life-threatening illnesses. They founded Kids Wish Network in 1997 and it began solely as a wish-granting organization. During the charity’s humble beginnings Shelley began granting the first few wishes for the kids out of the kitchen in their home.

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A year later, Kids Wish Network opened their first office in Oldsmar, Florida. Shelley Breiner decided to Expand Kids Wish Networks reach and programs to better serve more children and their family. Implementing a funeral assistance program that reaches out to families coping with the loss of a child. Holiday of Hope events are hosted regularly at pediatric hospitals. The Hero of the Month program was created to recognize more children. Kids Wish Network moved to Holiday, Florida in 2005.

Since founding the charity, Shelley Breiner has been the Executive Director of Kids Wish Network. Charged with seeing that the programs and services continue to grow and serve more children, Shelley works tirelessly. She and her family are honored to help make a positive impact on the lives of thousands of children.

You can visit Kids Wish Network to see how you can help!