4 minute read
A Nod to a Good Neighbor
BY MELANIE ROBITAILLE, SR. STAFF WRITER & GRAPHIC DESIGNER
In 2018, Sales Representative, Brent Gieseke, was in search of community involvement in Kansas City, Missouri, to pay forward some of his top grossing success and million-dollar production he achieved in his first few years with EXIT Realty. Little did he know, what he would find would change his life forever.
“We’re all meant to live a life of mission, however that may look,” he explained, having wanted to live abroad for a year himself. “For me, serving with Agape Pamoja has meant living life alongside refugee students and their families. It’s creating a ripple effect that we’re only starting to comprehend.”
The purpose of Agape Pamoja is to help serve the multi-faceted needs of refugees from war-torn countries residing in Kansas City. Brent’s involvement began with his opportunity to volunteer and use some of his contracting expertise to tile a floor in one of the organization’s Blessing Homes, and cultivated in his recent nomination and win of the Good Neighbor Award through the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR).
In his three years serving with this 501(c)3 organization, Brent has helped volunteer his time and money to provide housing, education, food, life skills, leadership development, and real estate services. “I utilize my skillset to identify, acquire, and manage housing. Since I came onboard, Agape Pamoja has grown from four to 25 residential units plus an event center in just two and a half years. It has allowed them to serve hundreds more refugees in the Kansas City area,” Brent said, which is needed as Census Bureau data shows that more than 450 refugees settle in the area each year. His work helping those in need, mentoring youth, and helping to revitalize derelict properties in the area garnered him NAR recognition and a $10,000 grant for Agape Pamoja, after being selected as one of five winners through a criteria-based, multistage judging process. Brent was also recognized as one of this year’s Good Neighbor Web Choice Favorites, and as one of 10 finalists voted for by the public, he earned the charity an additional $2,500. “
he shared in his emotional award video. And it’s a commitment he truly lives, mentoring students with their homework, and life skills like financial planning through a weekly get together he hosts at his home. He’s lovingly known as Papa Brent to the youth mentees, who he works alongside and has helped find success in their new lives.
"Papa Brent" as Sales Representative, Brent Gieseke is known teaching young refugees
“I’m amazed at how this has transitioned into living life and impacting the very people who reside in the homes,” he said. “In the beginning, many of the teens who came alongside the American volunteers to work on renovations had no skills using tools. Fast forward a year later and teens who’ve faithfully served with Agape Pamoja weekly are not only able to use basic tools but have transitioned to confident leaders on renovation projects overseeing American adult volunteers. You go into an experience like this thinking you are going to change lives. But my life has been changed more than anyone’s.”
Brent strongly believes a company’s values are exhibited by their actions. It’s one of the things he’s most proud of being part of EXIT which reaches beyond real estate through their Spirit of EXIT, Dollar-For-Dollar Matching Program where a portion of every transaction fee received by EXIT Realty Corp. International is put into a charitable fund from which philanthropic offices and associates can apply to have funds matched in their own efforts with registered charities.
