How involved are you in the real estate community, including your Board of Realtors and/or local council functions? What do you do to participate and give back to the industry?
“I’m a firm believer of being a participant in our local board. I am a past St. Augustine and St. Johns County Multiple Listing Service president, a past member of the Board of Realtors and a past member of the MLS Board. I am currently a co-chair for the Education Committee and teach two separate classes for the board. I am the proud recipient of a Realtor of the Year award for 1999 and in 1998 received a special recognition award from our local board. In the 15 years that I have been a Realtor in St. Augustine, I’ve been involved. This is my career; the changes that take place within our industry are very important. By being involved, I stay on top of all the new changes and laws. I also am able to give input on ways to better our field. I’m constantly given opinions by other Realtors on what we should do at a board level to have better Realtors — ways that we should reprimand them, penalize them or just plain hang them up by their toes. If agents who complain about how things are done or not done on a Board level got involved, you could help change what happens, or at the least understand why we can’t do some of those things. Our Board is run by us, the local Realtors! You can have a say in what happens, just get involved. You will not be sorry that you did.”
— Teresa Mercurio, Re/Max 100 Realty
“This year I have the pleasure of being a Florida Association of Realtor director. I currently serve on the Realtor Political Action Committee and Professional Standards Committee in both St. Augustine/St. Johns County Board of Realtors and the Northeast Florida Association of Realtors. I chair the Professional Standards Committee at NEFAR. I am a member of Women’s Council of Realtors and in the past served as both a local chapter president and district vice president. I was on the board three terms in Tallahassee. I currently serve on the Finance and Growth Management Task force at NEFAR. Probably the most fun I ever had was chairing the Social Committee in Tallahassee where we planned fundraisers and monthly social events! I have volunteered for the ‘Realtors Ramp it Up!’ several times and enjoy Habitat work. I obviously firmly believe in the importance of being involved in our profession on every level. It is an ever-changing business. If you don’t stay in the loop, how do you know what’s going on. It seems to me that people enjoy doing business more, with people they know and like. That’s the best reason of all.”
— Stephanie S. White, Coldwell Banker Walter Williams Realty, Inc.
“Even though I am an affiliate member, I attend the weekly Beaches NEFAR meetings on Thursday mornings and make the caravans as much as possible. We have a great group of people and our meetings are never boring. I also do ‘Realtors Ramp It Up!’ If you have never done this, please contact Sandy Holdren or Paul Gruenther and sign up for the next one. It is not only fun, a chance to network with our fellow industry cohorts; but also gives you a feeling of satisfaction when you realize that you have helped someone get out of his/her home who may have been shut-in for years simply because they could not get a wheelchair from their doorway to the ground. The RPAC auction and RPAC golf tournament are two great places to network and have fun as well as raise money for a worthy cause.”
— Carolyn Minor, Homes and Land Northeast Florida
“This is a good question that maybe will get more Realtors to reflect on what they can do to be more involved and help both the organizations we’re all part of and also help them as individuals trying to be the best professionals they can be. Involvement certainly contributes to personal growth and knowledge, as well as helping you recognize names you may see on listings you’re showing. How great it is to work on putting together a deal with someone you’ve spent time with at a breakfast meeting or done committee work with! I have been involved for years with the association, starting in the mid-1980s when I was with Watson and the corporate culture was strongly to give back and network with your fellow Realtors. I try to never miss our area caravan on Tuesday, and I support any gatherings we have in Ponte Vedra Beach and the beaches, and ‘cross the ditch’ whenever possible to attend openings, marketing events including Northeast Florida Builders Association’s Sales and Marketing Council’s Sam Tram and excellent breakfast meetings, and anything that will enhance my knowledge of the market and the industry. In the 1990’s, I served as president of the Ponte Vedra Beach Council and was active on the Education and Ethics/Grievance Committees. I organized caravans for Ponte Vedra Beach Realtors for a year or two and helped with many social events like the big holiday parties we used to have. In this decade, I’ve had to back off a bit due to spending more time trailing my son at his track and cross country meets all over the southeast. I did enjoy volunteering with the NEFAR members who staffed tables at local hotels to welcome Super Bowl visitors. I am very much enjoying being on the MLS Board, and I help from time to time on Nominating and RPAC committees at NEFAR. There are many opportunities for involvement with our association, and help is always welcome and needed. It’s a great thing to do at any time in your real estate career!”
— Clare Berry, Berry & Co. Real Estate
“I’m involved with NEFAR’s Beaches Council, several NEFAR Committees and the FAR Board of Directors. In my opinion the best ‘give back’ opportunity is NEFAR’s ‘Realtors Ramp it Up!’ program. We get to use power tools to build wheelchair ramps for our needy citizens. In addition to being personally rewarding and a great learning experience, these outings are tons of fun. It’s an easy way to give back.”
— Paul Gruenther, Vanguard Realty
“Last year I participated in “Realtors Ramp It Up!” and “Paint the Town”. I taught classes at ‘Housing Partnership of Jacksonville.’ I am also on the Educational Advisory Task Force at NEFAR.”
— Ollie Satcher-Brown, Prudential Network Realty
“By getting involved in community organizations, we expand our business network, expand our professional knowledge base, and have the opportunity to positively influence the industry. Each of our companies has a particular business model that hopefully matches our own business personality, but there are many ways to practice real estate. By meeting other agents, and learning about their methods, we de-mystify the differences between our organizations and have a more complete understanding of the industry. Once this happens, our working relationships improve, and it’s easier to sell because we’re all working together. Being involved also provides a forum to resolve issues, either between companies, or with the rules and guidelines as set forth by NEFAR, FAR or National Association of Realtors. Together we can work to make the buying and selling process fair to all parties in any transaction.”
— Jon Singleton, Watson Realty Corp.
“Our biggest involvement in giving back to the community is Habitat. I donate money from each closing to this great cause. You can see your money coming back in helping others. We sponsored Molly Knowlton (in our office) on a sailing trip from Newport to Bermuda. This trip received national exposure and was one of the largest fund raisers for Habitat.”
— Josie Deal, Coldwell Banker Jasinsky and Associates, Inc.
“I have always enjoyed attending functions and serving on committees with the Northeast Florida Builder’s Association’s Sales and Marketing Council, NEFAR and NEFBA. These events always result in learning something or meeting someone that benefits my personal/professional life as well as being a lot of fun and doing some good for others. Still, I don’t think I really understood the value of these networking opportunities until last fall when my company sent me to be on-site sales manager for a condominium project in Fort Lauderdale. I am a Jacksonville native and grew up in the industry (my mother has been a Realtor since the early 1980’s) so I know a lot of Realtors, developers and the history of many projects in the Jacksonville area. Suddenly, I am in Fort Lauderdale with no sense of history or basis of comparison for my project. I contacted the local Realtor board/SMC and was quickly rewarded with input from experienced agents who knew the South Florida market and were excited to network and exchange information. The value of these contacts was immeasurably beneficial, especially when faced with the challenges posed by hurricane Wilma and her lengthy aftermath. Being away from home and out of my comfort zone really brought into focus the value and depth of our local organizations.”
— Andie (Pennell) Patton, Key Realty Advisors
“I am very involved. I help out on ‘Realtors Ramp it Up!’, weekly Beaches NEFAR meetings, candidate screening at NEFAR and RPAC. It’s a great way to give back to the community, meet people, and pick up new skills.”
—Carol Zingone, Vanguard GMAC Realty
°Personally and with the bank, I have been involved with the sponsorship of the WCR luncheons, SMC various sponsorship and helped with several different committees. Our bank gets involved in Builders Care where basically you help build a home for someone in need. Over the years I have helped in many different ways. I have made some wonderful friendships and do more some years then others.°
—Jacquie Parrillo, Peoples First Community Bank
“I have been a member of the Northeast Florida Association of Realtor’s Education Task Force for five years and another very important committee for three years.”
— Marti Backus, Watson Realty Corp.