This & That continued from page 3... INNER LOOP (Cont): bring her to visit New York City during their coldest temps of the winter. Ofelia McDonald layered up in her warmest clothes and enjoyed time with her daughter Mia, who is in her second year of college. They went to a Broadway play, The Guggenheim Museum, ate great food and shopped! The temperature was 12 to 30 degrees- brrr! Richard and Dennis Raney spent the end of February and first few days of March in the warmth of the Mexican sunshine in Cancun. When they left Houston, it was 35 degrees with frost on the cars and rooftops and they could hardly wait to get away from the long winter. They stayed at the Live Aqua Resort, where they have vacationed four other times. Two other couples from Houston joined them. The weather was perfect, with high temperatures in the low 80’s and nights near 70. There were occasional quick tropical showers on 1 or 2 days. They enjoyed fine dining, sunbathing, swimming Caribbean, a good ng in the Caribbean book or two and lots of laughs. It was truly paradise and hard to return. They have been vacationing in Cancun and vicinity at least once a year since 1992. LAKE HOUSTON: Please drink the water from Lake Houston because our kids are wonderful! We have many proud parents as this past month has brought many smiles and joyful moments to them! Dayna Simon’s son C.J., who is attending Central Arkansas, participated in the Regional combine in Houston where he had the opportunity to show off his skills in front of many of the NFL scouts! Next he’ll go to Pro Day which is another workout where scouts come out and watch them prior to the draft. We wish C.J. the best of luck! Rebecca Ramirez’s son Noah recently won 4th place in his high school’s powerlifting competition. Way to go Noah, that is quite a feat! Sheri Petersen traveled with her daughter Bethany to the state swimming competition in Austin where Bethany won a silver medal for the 200 free relay race. Bethany is very proud of her accomplishment, as is her mother! Joni Wheeland’s grandson Jon was named the Duke of his semiformal dance at Livingston Junior High. He is quite a handsome young man and we’re sure as nice as Joni is... More grandbabies are in the future for Kendra Lee when her stepson and daughter-in-law have their first baby in August. Kendra is also pleased to have her daughter KC Irwin join the family business and is now practicing real estate at the Lake Houston office. Lisa Dempsey’s oldest daughter Briana said “Yes!” to her now fiancé, so let the joyous wedding planning commence! The whole office took a field trip to the The Bridges, a new waterfront community with D.R. Horton just down the street from the office, for breakfast and our weekly meeting. Everyone was excited to learn about the new community and it was fun to get out of the office with the whole gang! Several of the agents including Carol Marple, Debbie Stockwell, Jennifer Jones, Leslie Free and Lisa Dempsey met up to take a workout class together at The Booty Space, and all enjoyed the butt-kicking workout together... Along with newbie KC Irwin we would like to welcome Marcy Rogers, Desmond Woram and Lacy DeSouza to the team- we are pleased they chose us to start their exciting futures with us! MEMORIAL: BHGRE Memorial ladies Diana Hu, Meg Beach, Keisha Benson-Torres, Judy LaFico and Nancy Henderson dived into the New Year right at iFly, an new indoor skydiving place just down the road... Congratulations Scott Black on the arrival of his precious grandson Luke Edward Norman, born g on o January 19th, weighing 7 lbs. 6oz. and a 20” long in Corpus Christi. Proud ud parents are Scott’s daughter Mercedes and her husband- Dr. Roy Norman, who d actually works in the hospital Luke was born at! Congratulations a to Blake Vogelsang for winning Houston Rodeo tickets at our Tuesday meeting on January 27th. We had a delightful o Memorial Breakfast Kickoff, sponsored by Jay Morrow of M Gibraltar Insurance and Scott Wilson of Gibraltar Mortgage. Our guest speakers were our own Mark Woodroof sp and Marilyn Eiland.... Congratulations a to our Memorial team! On February y 18th we celebrated all of w their hard work and th achievements at the a Breakfast, held at Th The Westin Memorial Annual Awards Breakfast City. Huge congratulations to our 2014 Top Producers: Individual Sales Leader and Individual Top Producer: Brad Fleming; Individual Listing Leader: Meg Beach. Individual Top Producer-Units: Diana Hu. Team Top Producers-Units: nits: Thalia & Josh Guderyon. Emerald Elite Achievers: Brad Fleming, Meg Beach and Diana Hu. Platinum Achievers: The Guderyon Team, Judy LaFico, and Lynette Lew.
G Gold Achievers: Pat Nimtz, Jean Risha, Ann Woodroof, and Cindy R TTrahan. Silver Achievers: The Webster Group, Team Barzilla, W Nancy and Clive Gardner, Lou N Symington, Anna Kahn, Ben S Hunter, Nancy Henderson, and Gay H ay Donehoo. Donehoo We also a welcomed our new Agent Brian LeJune! Happy Birthday: Sylvia Alvarez, Nancy Henderson, and B Tracie Pierce. Tr WOODLANDS: Linda Startz and family (husband, John, children, Meghan, Amy and Jonathan, plus Amy’s new husband, Jared) all went to Belize for a week over Christmas for an amazing family vacation/family Christmas AND for Amy and Jared’s honeymoon. How many newlyweds take their families with them on their honeymoon? It was a beautiful 79 degrees there every day (their winter) so they relaxed, played on the beach and in the Caribbean Sea (snorkeling, kayaking, etc.) and enjoyed some wonderful family time together. While the rest had to return home to the “real world” after a week, Amy and Jared remained in Belize and are spending the next 3 months traveling throughout Central America (Costa Rica, Panama, etc.) for their “dream honeymoon.” The stories and photos they email us are priceless! Jonathan just started his own business at 23- Mass Catalyst, an auction-based investment crowdfunding platform that connects businesses with investors, allowing businesses to auction equity or debt while giving investors access to unique investment opportunities. Daughter Meghan just started her final semester at UT School of Nursing in Houston and will graduate this May. 2014 was an amazing (and busy) year for the Startz family! Judy Zimmerman and husband Chal flew out to California to see the Rose Parade in beautiful Pasadena (this had been on their bucket list!), visited with Nicole’s mom in the mountains of Oak Glen, and finished off their trip with four days in Palm Springs... Chal and Judy are now on a 3 week cruise through the Carribean, stopping at 14 ports! Meanwhile, Kurt and Nicole Zimmerman celebrated their TENTH WEDDING ANNIVERSARY with a trip to Fredericksburg and Austin. The Zimmerman Team is feeling refreshed in anticipation of a great year! Cheri Young volunteered at the American Heart Association’s Heart Ball. This event is personal to her as a friend of hers had a heart attack last year as well as her Mom who has also suffered ha a stroke and heart attack... The 20th annual Montgomery County Heart Ball was held on February 21st at the Woodlands Wa Waterway Marriott. Ba e way Ma o . Our Heart Ball is a meaningful fundraising gala O for the American Heart Association (AHA), a fo national health organization, whose sole mission na is big, but incredibly important: to build healthier lives, free from cardiovascular diseases and liv stroke... t k We W would ld like li to welcome James Stanczak to BHGRE. He ran for Congress in 2012 and 2014, coming in second both times. He has a blended family of 7 children and can’t wait to see what 2015 has in store for him! Kate Malito and Husband Brian celebrated brated their second Anniversary in Vegas- Congrats to the two of them! Oya Inanc attended CRS “GAINING THE EDGE G – SSELL-A-BRATION 2015” in Las Vegas on Feb 16th-17th. It was organized by b the Council of Residential Specialists... Sell-a-Bration is the only event ev in the industry that is specifically for CRS Designees, candidates and a those interested in improving their business through world-class education. This annual th event attracts hundreds of top-producing ev Realtors who are seeking to improve their R business and increase their referral networks b through high-quality ed education and networking. This year’s program featured over 30 educational sessions covering real-world, business practices delivered by successful, proven practitioners... Nancy Johnson and husband just returned from a 12-day cruise to five beautiful She b tif l IIslands. l d Sh also added three new great-grandchildren to our already 25 we had. So now they have 28 great grand’s, 42 grandchildren and d 15 children between Doug and herself! Life is good and she sure has had so many Blessings since she and Doug got married almost 2 years ye ago... Brad Carlson’s youngest daughter Sydney celebrated her Senior Presentation for National Charity ce League (a mother and daughter organization) in February. Le She S was honored with one of the highest awards, The Modelette Award, as well as being the M past p Chapter President of her class. Her H Grandfather, Bob, and his wife, Karen, came down from Lawrence, K Kansas to attend K d the h ceremony. Heather Carlson was recognized with Sydney for her volunteer work for the chapter as well. We are very proud of everything Sydney has accomplished and look forward to her continued achievements in college next year!
March 2015
inhouse house
Breaking News: Gary Greene takes top award in the BHGRE Network for closed units and Community Involvement award at 2015 BHGRE Fusion Conference in Vegas!
Relocation Wins Top CARTUS Awards Just one year after Houston’s largest broker joined Cartus, the industry leader in relocation support for organizations worldwide, BHGRE Gary Greene’s Relocation department has scored three more awards this month, this time receiving a Platinum Award, Real Estate Services Award, and Five Star Award from the Cartus Broker Network. The awards were presented at the annual Broker Network International Conference held at the JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort and Spa in Palm Desert, California. Cartus is a worldwide leader in employee relocation solutions, and Platinum is the highest level of the Excellence Awards presented to principal brokers. Excellence Award recognition is based on performance results related to a wide variety of goals including customer service, cost management, and effective analysis and marketing of homes. Fewer than 26 percent of the Network’s principal brokers achieved Platinum-level recognition for their 2014 performance. The Five Star Award recognizes brokers who have met or exceeded their individual objectives for outgoing broker-to-broker referral closings during the calendar year. “This recognition, after only our first full year as a principal broker in the Cartus network, validates the dedication of our agents to helping families in their relocation to Houston,” said managing partner Marilyn Eiland. “Receiving these awards is a huge honor, and something that was a goal we’ve worked for consistently throughout 2014,” said Pattie Huey, Relocation Director for Gary Greene. “Our entire staff, as well as our agents who submitted referrals last year, put a committed effort into achieving the best results for their clients
aand Cartus.” Pattie, as well as Owner Mark Woodroof and Relocation M aagents Rachel Holden and Kristen BBrown were on hand in Palm Desert to accept the awards from D CCartus. Thanks and Congratulations to the whole team- Cindy Elsner, KKaylon Alexander, Meredith Loving, Debbie Williams, Charles Miller D work in 2014 and beyond. and Kamilah Sage for their hard w
2014 Awards MeetingLots of Fun,, Lots of Photos!
W wish We i h we had h d room to t show h every greatt photo h t from f our company awards breakfast in February, but since we don’t, get on the internet and head to our Facebook page! The link can be found on the front page of www.GaryGreene.com by scrolling to the bottom and clicking the Facebook icon! Give us a like when you get there, then click on the Photos tab and look for the 2014 awards album!
Top Performers January 2015
1. MOIRA HOLDEN, FT. BEND 2. CONNIE SANTIAGO, CHAMPIONS 3. MARY KIESWETTER, KATY 4. SHAD BOGANY, BELLAIRE 5. KIM SODERBERG, WOODLANDS 6. PEGGY HORTON, FT. BEND 7. KATHRYN ANDERSON, FT. BEND 8. JENNY ROLTSCH, WOODLANDS 9. DAVID GOLDBERG, FT. BEND 10. DAVID JOHNSTON, BAY AREA
Top Builder Sales 1. ROBYN BRAND, CUSTOM HOMES
Top Team Performers 1. LIPPENCOTT TEAM, CYPRESS 2. TEAM SANDERSON, WOODLANDS 3. HANSON TEAM, WOODLANDS 4. FRENK TEAM, BAY AREA 5. KEITH OWENS TEAM, BAY AREA 6. GARDNER TEAM, MEMORIAL 7. GREER TEAM, FT. BEND 8. JILL SMITH TEAM, CYPRESS 9. GINGER HURLEY TEAM, CYPRESS 10. LETSON/VALDEZ TEAM, BAY AREA
CONGRATULATIONS TO
THE LIPPINCOTT TEAM
BHGRE GARY GREENE’S TOP TEAM PRODUCERS FOR JANUARY 2015 J
Top Performers February 2015 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
WENDY ROLOFF, CHAMPIONS CONNIE SANTIAGO, CHAMPIONS SARA NGUYEN, FT. BEND NANCY SEALE, WOODLANDS DAN McCARVER, BAY AREA CHRISTI BORDEN, KATY LINDA BECK, CHAMPIONS SUSAN MATSON, CHAMPIONS JODY ROCHE, CHAMPIONS KELLY PAUL, BAY AREA
Top Team Performers 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
LIPPENCOTT TEAM, CYPRESS KEITH OWENS TEAM, BAY AREA SUSAN GREER TEAM, FT. BEND JILL SMITH TEAM, CYPRESS FRENK TEAM, BAY AREA WADE TEAM, KATY HANSON TEAM, WOODLANDS MARTIN TEAM, FRIENDSWOOD MISSIHA/BAILEY TEAM, INNER LOOP DAVILA TEAM, WOODLANDS
Welcome Our Newest Agents!
Jan-Feb 2015 Bay Area Jimee Caudle Kassandra Harrington Champions Jessica Allen Norma Malagarie Carl Oliver Carolina Purnell Anne Marie Robinson Melanie WhiƟng Cypress Taylor Berry Donna Wilson Fort Bend Trina Blackburn Harry Vogelfang
Fort Bend Linda Wise Friendswood Leslie Buraƫ Dawn Donahoe Angela Holm Inner Loop Regina Guerrero Frank MarƟn Mona Saghafi KrisƟna Wales Donnie Weidner Katy Janice Breau Andre Goodman Brenda Harper
Lake Conroe Deena Dollar-Wiƫg Joan MarƟn Brenda Schafer Judith Weiss Lake Houston Lacey DeSouza KC Irwin Marcey Rogers Desmond Woram Memorial Brian LeJune Woodlands Holly Frantom Carmen Price James Stanczak
CONGRATULATIONS TO
THE LIPPINCOTT TEAM
BHGRE GARY GREENE’S TOP TEAM PRODUCERS FOR FEBRUARY 2015 LBrass@Graebel.com Ask for Leslie Brass
Find us on Social Media! CONGRATULATIONS TO
CONGRATULATIONS TO
BHGRE GARY GREENE’S TOP PRODUCER FOR JANUARY 2015
BHGRE GARY GREENE’S TOP PRODUCER FOR FEBRUARY 2015
MOIRA HOLDEN
WENDY ROLOFF
Facebook.com/BetterHomesandGardensRealEstateGaryGreene Twitter.com/BHGREGaryGreene Linkedin.com/company/better-homes-and-gardens-real-estate-gary-greene Pinterest.com/BHGREGaryGreene Instagram.com/bhgregarygreene plus.google.com/b/101415990816782855998
BAY AREA: Welcome to our new agents Annette Caudle, Wendy Baulch and Sandi Harrington... Plans are in full swing for our 2015 Sunshine Kids Bash, a tropical theme not yet named, set for October 3rd. Stay tuned for more info… Ann Blanchard was not only busy listing homes last month, but traveling with a friend to Costa Rica. Lotsa great eats and copious libations were enjoyed by all... our own JJeanette Di Dickson k traveled with husband Jim to Nashville and is photographed tr with w none other than Steven Tyler of Aerosmith. We all LOVE him hi and of course Jeanette. So jealous… Dave and Laureen Marrow welcomed their first Grandson, M Aike A David Hosea Hansen, into this world on o February 24th. Their “Little Mountain Man” left the hospital dressed in the M sweater his Great Grandma Pat knit for his Mommy 35 years ago. How sweet and cute! Gary and Billie Weber welcomed a beautiful great granddaughter, Ella Rose, March 2nd. Four year old brother Easton lloves hi his b baby M b sister it and a doesn’t mind sharing his great-grandparent’s attention... Felicity and Norman Frenk were off to the BNP Paribas Tennis F Open in Palm Springs, the second largest tennis stadium in the O world. They are playing tennis, but not with the pros! Patsy w Richard, Kelly Paul and family enjoyed… really enjoyed R this th year’s Mardi Gras celebration in Galveston. Riding a float by Houston Art G Car, C everyone had a great time throwing beads and partying with the crowd... Derrick Gobin’s 17 year old son, Khalil, is receiving an award for excelling in math and science from Buzz Aldren, for the entire state of Georgia…Wow!!! Our office is happy to welcome our new loan cer, La Shaun oan offi officer Otems. La Shaun was formerly with another real estate firm/ mortgage company and a comes to us with 15 years experience in the mortgage industry... Leslie Dorsey, our office coordinator for the past 15+ in years, has bid the job world a farewell. We threw a rather loud y party for her, along with lots of $$$ for her p to pamper herself in some of her favorite places. At least three party farewells for p Leslie and it’s now rumored she is spending Le her days working in the yard and lazing around in her PJs. Sounds pretty good right now! We will miss her.
able a to attend. Mary Jayne Mc Guinness’ husband Mike M and Ken Teusink have served for years on the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Board. They surprised C Ken at the birthday dinner. When he saw them at the t restaurant, he thought it was just a coincidence they were there at that time. What a total surprise... t p Brian Schwartz and wife Lauren went to a Texas winery to celebrate their anniversary. Brian T i ate some bad food and ended up with food poisoning, which put him totally out of commission for 4 days. He still thinks it was worth it but next time he goes on vacation, he is going to be very careful about what he eats! Finally, Sharon and Brian had a chance to meet with Congressman Ted Poe at the Northwest Realtor Breakfast this month.
CHAMPIONS: Love is in the air! Sarah Hoffman of the TruTeam became engaged to Michael and Susan Trujillo’s son Joey on Valentine’s Day! Sarah will be a true Trujillo in the spring of 2016. Congratulations to Sarah and Joey and the TruTeam! Speaking of true love, Gene Saxton bought a huge new red pickup truck. Pam was driving it and ran over Gene’s foot. They are still together! The vows do say for better or worse and luckily there is no permanent damage but she may have a hard time living that down... Proud mom Marie Dierks son is now partner in a medical practice. He does pediatric orthopedic surgery. All those years studying and years of tuition paid off... Vanessa Muse has proven to be a multitalented lady. Not only does she sell a lot of homes, but she is a great fisherman. If you look at the pic you ho see se that is one BIG fish ! Speaking of talent, we also have team members that can cook. The “New Kids on the Block”, te a group of agents in Career Development, won the second annual Chili cookoff at the Champions office. Earl Trammell a acted as DJ and we had 4 a teams. Owner Mark Woodroof te and a GHFS President George Cooley were the judges. The team is made up of Eric Moon, Ingrid Hanna, Tiffany Payne, Kara Michele, Dan Singer, Brian Jackson and Paula Valenzuela... One BIG fish! Connie Santiago celebrated her birthday by being chosen to list a $ $2.5 M Million dollar home. Nice Birthday gift, Connie! Sue Taylor and her hubby are world travelers, off on a cruise of the Orient... You know all that art they auction off on cruise ships that you wonder who buys? Well Susan Matson and her hubby do. They enjoy collecting art. What a fun way to do it and sometimes they get free cruises too. Susan and her husband are also heading for the Orient on vacation. I am sure she’ll figure out how to keep in touch with her clients while gone, but they may get emails and calls in the middle of the night! Manager Sharon Teusink spent 4 days in Puerta Vallarta to celebrate her husband’s birthday. Her sister and Ken and Sharon’s son and wife and their grandson also were
GALVESTON: The GAR February Luncheon was attended by Manager J Roy Hall and agents Cynthia Wander, Lynn Winget, and Patti Zajack, seen in this pic with guest speaker Bob Ford, the voice of the Houston Astros standing between Lynn and Patti.
CORPORATE: MASTER CERTIFIED NEGOTIATORS! Tom Hayman, Founder of the Real Estate Negotiation Institute congratulated recipients of the MCNE (Master Certified Negotiation Expert) designation following a recent two-day negotiations seminar attended by 65 Gary Greene agents. Marking completion of 3 two-day seminars leading to the MCNE are (left to right) Keith Lutenbacher, Fort Bend; Veronica Griffin, Inner Loop; Ramona Boeker, Galveston; Tom, and Linda Stiles, The Woodlands. CNE/MCNE courses are an on-going education program for BHGRE Gary Greene agents. FORT BEND: Our Kick-off/Celebration of 2014 was held at Riverbend Country Club earlier this month. Attended by owners Mark Woodroof and a Marilyn Eiland, all award winners received gifts... Top w PProducer Moira Holden, for reasons unknown to this newsletter, Markk with re t pelted lt d M ith marshmallows... so while he arrived in a black suit, he m left le in a polka-dotted one... On O a recent fishing expedition, Manager Nikki Owen showed M she’s sh the one we can count on for fo a fish fry around here. Nikki loves to fi sh! Maybe our next lo fundraising effort ff for f TOKC should be a fish fry?
INNER LOOP: We have a TV star in our midst! Ces Guerra appeared on Great Day y Houston with Debra Duncan on January 27 to promote his hot new cookbook “Gumbo for the Tiger Soul.” Ces and friend co Ginger Haberle cooked “Blue Grass Miracle Dog G Pile P Bread Pudding” and loved sharing it with local Houston fans! The recipe is one of Ginger’s. Ginger H lives liv in Tyler and she and Ces have been friends since their college days. Needless to say, Ginger si too... Dia Diane Giagnacovo had an interesting February. She is a big LSU fan too went with a group of friends to Chicago to do the “Hustle Up the Hancock” climb. They did the half climb which was fifty-two floors! This was all to benefit respiratory health. It was about seven degrees in Chicago and miserably windy but overall, they had a good time and all survived running up all those stairs. They also visited The Second City (which is where most of the stars from Saturday Night Live come from) and that was a blast! The entire weekend was fun. They ate Chicago-style deep dish pizza and Chicago-style hot dogs pretty much all weekend. Of course they did some shopping, as all ladies do, and even found time for sightseeing. Diane had a great time but is happy to be back in warmer weather! When she returned she and her family enjoyed the Fat Stock Show and Rodeo... When the NFL playoffs were over, everyone was eager er to get on Marie Lee’s Super Bowl Squares. Hal Carroll was the biggest winner- $250; Dyana Babik won $175 and Bruce Nicholson won $100. All had fun watching their numbers and hoping they’d win. Only a mother’s love for her daughter could
...This & That continued on page 4
Top Performers January 2015
1. MOIRA HOLDEN, FT. BEND 2. CONNIE SANTIAGO, CHAMPIONS 3. MARY KIESWETTER, KATY 4. SHAD BOGANY, BELLAIRE 5. KIM SODERBERG, WOODLANDS 6. PEGGY HORTON, FT. BEND 7. KATHRYN ANDERSON, FT. BEND 8. JENNY ROLTSCH, WOODLANDS 9. DAVID GOLDBERG, FT. BEND 10. DAVID JOHNSTON, BAY AREA
Top Builder Sales 1. ROBYN BRAND, CUSTOM HOMES
Top Team Performers 1. LIPPENCOTT TEAM, CYPRESS 2. TEAM SANDERSON, WOODLANDS 3. HANSON TEAM, WOODLANDS 4. FRENK TEAM, BAY AREA 5. KEITH OWENS TEAM, BAY AREA 6. GARDNER TEAM, MEMORIAL 7. GREER TEAM, FT. BEND 8. JILL SMITH TEAM, CYPRESS 9. GINGER HURLEY TEAM, CYPRESS 10. LETSON/VALDEZ TEAM, BAY AREA
CONGRATULATIONS TO
THE LIPPINCOTT TEAM
BHGRE GARY GREENE’S TOP TEAM PRODUCERS FOR JANUARY 2015 J
Top Performers February 2015 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
WENDY ROLOFF, CHAMPIONS CONNIE SANTIAGO, CHAMPIONS SARA NGUYEN, FT. BEND NANCY SEALE, WOODLANDS DAN McCARVER, BAY AREA CHRISTI BORDEN, KATY LINDA BECK, CHAMPIONS SUSAN MATSON, CHAMPIONS JODY ROCHE, CHAMPIONS KELLY PAUL, BAY AREA
Top Team Performers 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
LIPPENCOTT TEAM, CYPRESS KEITH OWENS TEAM, BAY AREA SUSAN GREER TEAM, FT. BEND JILL SMITH TEAM, CYPRESS FRENK TEAM, BAY AREA WADE TEAM, KATY HANSON TEAM, WOODLANDS MARTIN TEAM, FRIENDSWOOD MISSIHA/BAILEY TEAM, INNER LOOP DAVILA TEAM, WOODLANDS
Welcome Our Newest Agents!
Jan-Feb 2015 Bay Area Jimee Caudle Kassandra Harrington Champions Jessica Allen Norma Malagarie Carl Oliver Carolina Purnell Anne Marie Robinson Melanie WhiƟng Cypress Taylor Berry Donna Wilson Fort Bend Trina Blackburn Harry Vogelfang
Fort Bend Linda Wise Friendswood Leslie Buraƫ Dawn Donahoe Angela Holm Inner Loop Regina Guerrero Frank MarƟn Mona Saghafi KrisƟna Wales Donnie Weidner Katy Janice Breau Andre Goodman Brenda Harper
Lake Conroe Deena Dollar-Wiƫg Joan MarƟn Brenda Schafer Judith Weiss Lake Houston Lacey DeSouza KC Irwin Marcey Rogers Desmond Woram Memorial Brian LeJune Woodlands Holly Frantom Carmen Price James Stanczak
CONGRATULATIONS TO
THE LIPPINCOTT TEAM
BHGRE GARY GREENE’S TOP TEAM PRODUCERS FOR FEBRUARY 2015 LBrass@Graebel.com Ask for Leslie Brass
Find us on Social Media! CONGRATULATIONS TO
CONGRATULATIONS TO
BHGRE GARY GREENE’S TOP PRODUCER FOR JANUARY 2015
BHGRE GARY GREENE’S TOP PRODUCER FOR FEBRUARY 2015
MOIRA HOLDEN
WENDY ROLOFF
Facebook.com/BetterHomesandGardensRealEstateGaryGreene Twitter.com/BHGREGaryGreene Linkedin.com/company/better-homes-and-gardens-real-estate-gary-greene Pinterest.com/BHGREGaryGreene Instagram.com/bhgregarygreene plus.google.com/b/101415990816782855998
BAY AREA: Welcome to our new agents Annette Caudle, Wendy Baulch and Sandi Harrington... Plans are in full swing for our 2015 Sunshine Kids Bash, a tropical theme not yet named, set for October 3rd. Stay tuned for more info… Ann Blanchard was not only busy listing homes last month, but traveling with a friend to Costa Rica. Lotsa great eats and copious libations were enjoyed by all... our own JJeanette Di Dickson k traveled with husband Jim to Nashville and is photographed tr with w none other than Steven Tyler of Aerosmith. We all LOVE him hi and of course Jeanette. So jealous… Dave and Laureen Marrow welcomed their first Grandson, M Aike A David Hosea Hansen, into this world on o February 24th. Their “Little Mountain Man” left the hospital dressed in the M sweater his Great Grandma Pat knit for his Mommy 35 years ago. How sweet and cute! Gary and Billie Weber welcomed a beautiful great granddaughter, Ella Rose, March 2nd. Four year old brother Easton lloves hi his b baby M b sister it and a doesn’t mind sharing his great-grandparent’s attention... Felicity and Norman Frenk were off to the BNP Paribas Tennis F Open in Palm Springs, the second largest tennis stadium in the O world. They are playing tennis, but not with the pros! Patsy w Richard, Kelly Paul and family enjoyed… really enjoyed R this th year’s Mardi Gras celebration in Galveston. Riding a float by Houston Art G Car, C everyone had a great time throwing beads and partying with the crowd... Derrick Gobin’s 17 year old son, Khalil, is receiving an award for excelling in math and science from Buzz Aldren, for the entire state of Georgia…Wow!!! Our office is happy to welcome our new loan cer, La Shaun oan offi officer Otems. La Shaun was formerly with another real estate firm/ mortgage company and a comes to us with 15 years experience in the mortgage industry... Leslie Dorsey, our office coordinator for the past 15+ in years, has bid the job world a farewell. We threw a rather loud y party for her, along with lots of $$$ for her p to pamper herself in some of her favorite places. At least three party farewells for p Leslie and it’s now rumored she is spending Le her days working in the yard and lazing around in her PJs. Sounds pretty good right now! We will miss her.
able a to attend. Mary Jayne Mc Guinness’ husband Mike M and Ken Teusink have served for years on the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Board. They surprised C Ken at the birthday dinner. When he saw them at the t restaurant, he thought it was just a coincidence they were there at that time. What a total surprise... t p Brian Schwartz and wife Lauren went to a Texas winery to celebrate their anniversary. Brian T i ate some bad food and ended up with food poisoning, which put him totally out of commission for 4 days. He still thinks it was worth it but next time he goes on vacation, he is going to be very careful about what he eats! Finally, Sharon and Brian had a chance to meet with Congressman Ted Poe at the Northwest Realtor Breakfast this month.
CHAMPIONS: Love is in the air! Sarah Hoffman of the TruTeam became engaged to Michael and Susan Trujillo’s son Joey on Valentine’s Day! Sarah will be a true Trujillo in the spring of 2016. Congratulations to Sarah and Joey and the TruTeam! Speaking of true love, Gene Saxton bought a huge new red pickup truck. Pam was driving it and ran over Gene’s foot. They are still together! The vows do say for better or worse and luckily there is no permanent damage but she may have a hard time living that down... Proud mom Marie Dierks son is now partner in a medical practice. He does pediatric orthopedic surgery. All those years studying and years of tuition paid off... Vanessa Muse has proven to be a multitalented lady. Not only does she sell a lot of homes, but she is a great fisherman. If you look at the pic you ho see se that is one BIG fish ! Speaking of talent, we also have team members that can cook. The “New Kids on the Block”, te a group of agents in Career Development, won the second annual Chili cookoff at the Champions office. Earl Trammell a acted as DJ and we had 4 a teams. Owner Mark Woodroof te and a GHFS President George Cooley were the judges. The team is made up of Eric Moon, Ingrid Hanna, Tiffany Payne, Kara Michele, Dan Singer, Brian Jackson and Paula Valenzuela... One BIG fish! Connie Santiago celebrated her birthday by being chosen to list a $ $2.5 M Million dollar home. Nice Birthday gift, Connie! Sue Taylor and her hubby are world travelers, off on a cruise of the Orient... You know all that art they auction off on cruise ships that you wonder who buys? Well Susan Matson and her hubby do. They enjoy collecting art. What a fun way to do it and sometimes they get free cruises too. Susan and her husband are also heading for the Orient on vacation. I am sure she’ll figure out how to keep in touch with her clients while gone, but they may get emails and calls in the middle of the night! Manager Sharon Teusink spent 4 days in Puerta Vallarta to celebrate her husband’s birthday. Her sister and Ken and Sharon’s son and wife and their grandson also were
GALVESTON: The GAR February Luncheon was attended by Manager J Roy Hall and agents Cynthia Wander, Lynn Winget, and Patti Zajack, seen in this pic with guest speaker Bob Ford, the voice of the Houston Astros standing between Lynn and Patti.
CORPORATE: MASTER CERTIFIED NEGOTIATORS! Tom Hayman, Founder of the Real Estate Negotiation Institute congratulated recipients of the MCNE (Master Certified Negotiation Expert) designation following a recent two-day negotiations seminar attended by 65 Gary Greene agents. Marking completion of 3 two-day seminars leading to the MCNE are (left to right) Keith Lutenbacher, Fort Bend; Veronica Griffin, Inner Loop; Ramona Boeker, Galveston; Tom, and Linda Stiles, The Woodlands. CNE/MCNE courses are an on-going education program for BHGRE Gary Greene agents. FORT BEND: Our Kick-off/Celebration of 2014 was held at Riverbend Country Club earlier this month. Attended by owners Mark Woodroof and a Marilyn Eiland, all award winners received gifts... Top w PProducer Moira Holden, for reasons unknown to this newsletter, Markk with re t pelted lt d M ith marshmallows... so while he arrived in a black suit, he m left le in a polka-dotted one... On O a recent fishing expedition, Manager Nikki Owen showed M she’s sh the one we can count on for fo a fish fry around here. Nikki loves to fi sh! Maybe our next lo fundraising effort ff for f TOKC should be a fish fry?
INNER LOOP: We have a TV star in our midst! Ces Guerra appeared on Great Day y Houston with Debra Duncan on January 27 to promote his hot new cookbook “Gumbo for the Tiger Soul.” Ces and friend co Ginger Haberle cooked “Blue Grass Miracle Dog G Pile P Bread Pudding” and loved sharing it with local Houston fans! The recipe is one of Ginger’s. Ginger H lives liv in Tyler and she and Ces have been friends since their college days. Needless to say, Ginger si too... Dia Diane Giagnacovo had an interesting February. She is a big LSU fan too went with a group of friends to Chicago to do the “Hustle Up the Hancock” climb. They did the half climb which was fifty-two floors! This was all to benefit respiratory health. It was about seven degrees in Chicago and miserably windy but overall, they had a good time and all survived running up all those stairs. They also visited The Second City (which is where most of the stars from Saturday Night Live come from) and that was a blast! The entire weekend was fun. They ate Chicago-style deep dish pizza and Chicago-style hot dogs pretty much all weekend. Of course they did some shopping, as all ladies do, and even found time for sightseeing. Diane had a great time but is happy to be back in warmer weather! When she returned she and her family enjoyed the Fat Stock Show and Rodeo... When the NFL playoffs were over, everyone was eager er to get on Marie Lee’s Super Bowl Squares. Hal Carroll was the biggest winner- $250; Dyana Babik won $175 and Bruce Nicholson won $100. All had fun watching their numbers and hoping they’d win. Only a mother’s love for her daughter could
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This & That continued from page 3... INNER LOOP (Cont): bring her to visit New York City during their coldest temps of the winter. Ofelia McDonald layered up in her warmest clothes and enjoyed time with her daughter Mia, who is in her second year of college. They went to a Broadway play, The Guggenheim Museum, ate great food and shopped! The temperature was 12 to 30 degrees- brrr! Richard and Dennis Raney spent the end of February and first few days of March in the warmth of the Mexican sunshine in Cancun. When they left Houston, it was 35 degrees with frost on the cars and rooftops and they could hardly wait to get away from the long winter. They stayed at the Live Aqua Resort, where they have vacationed four other times. Two other couples from Houston joined them. The weather was perfect, with high temperatures in the low 80’s and nights near 70. There were occasional quick tropical showers on 1 or 2 days. They enjoyed fine dining, sunbathing, swimming Caribbean, a good ng in the Caribbean book or two and lots of laughs. It was truly paradise and hard to return. They have been vacationing in Cancun and vicinity at least once a year since 1992. LAKE HOUSTON: Please drink the water from Lake Houston because our kids are wonderful! We have many proud parents as this past month has brought many smiles and joyful moments to them! Dayna Simon’s son C.J., who is attending Central Arkansas, participated in the Regional combine in Houston where he had the opportunity to show off his skills in front of many of the NFL scouts! Next he’ll go to Pro Day which is another workout where scouts come out and watch them prior to the draft. We wish C.J. the best of luck! Rebecca Ramirez’s son Noah recently won 4th place in his high school’s powerlifting competition. Way to go Noah, that is quite a feat! Sheri Petersen traveled with her daughter Bethany to the state swimming competition in Austin where Bethany won a silver medal for the 200 free relay race. Bethany is very proud of her accomplishment, as is her mother! Joni Wheeland’s grandson Jon was named the Duke of his semiformal dance at Livingston Junior High. He is quite a handsome young man and we’re sure as nice as Joni is... More grandbabies are in the future for Kendra Lee when her stepson and daughter-in-law have their first baby in August. Kendra is also pleased to have her daughter KC Irwin join the family business and is now practicing real estate at the Lake Houston office. Lisa Dempsey’s oldest daughter Briana said “Yes!” to her now fiancé, so let the joyous wedding planning commence! The whole office took a field trip to the The Bridges, a new waterfront community with D.R. Horton just down the street from the office, for breakfast and our weekly meeting. Everyone was excited to learn about the new community and it was fun to get out of the office with the whole gang! Several of the agents including Carol Marple, Debbie Stockwell, Jennifer Jones, Leslie Free and Lisa Dempsey met up to take a workout class together at The Booty Space, and all enjoyed the butt-kicking workout together... Along with newbie KC Irwin we would like to welcome Marcy Rogers, Desmond Woram and Lacy DeSouza to the team- we are pleased they chose us to start their exciting futures with us! MEMORIAL: BHGRE Memorial ladies Diana Hu, Meg Beach, Keisha Benson-Torres, Judy LaFico and Nancy Henderson dived into the New Year right at iFly, an new indoor skydiving place just down the road... Congratulations Scott Black on the arrival of his precious grandson Luke Edward Norman, born g on o January 19th, weighing 7 lbs. 6oz. and a 20” long in Corpus Christi. Proud ud parents are Scott’s daughter Mercedes and her husband- Dr. Roy Norman, who d actually works in the hospital Luke was born at! Congratulations a to Blake Vogelsang for winning Houston Rodeo tickets at our Tuesday meeting on January 27th. We had a delightful o Memorial Breakfast Kickoff, sponsored by Jay Morrow of M Gibraltar Insurance and Scott Wilson of Gibraltar Mortgage. Our guest speakers were our own Mark Woodroof sp and Marilyn Eiland.... Congratulations a to our Memorial team! On February y 18th we celebrated all of w their hard work and th achievements at the a Breakfast, held at Th The Westin Memorial Annual Awards Breakfast City. Huge congratulations to our 2014 Top Producers: Individual Sales Leader and Individual Top Producer: Brad Fleming; Individual Listing Leader: Meg Beach. Individual Top Producer-Units: Diana Hu. Team Top Producers-Units: nits: Thalia & Josh Guderyon. Emerald Elite Achievers: Brad Fleming, Meg Beach and Diana Hu. Platinum Achievers: The Guderyon Team, Judy LaFico, and Lynette Lew.
G Gold Achievers: Pat Nimtz, Jean Risha, Ann Woodroof, and Cindy R TTrahan. Silver Achievers: The Webster Group, Team Barzilla, W Nancy and Clive Gardner, Lou N Symington, Anna Kahn, Ben S Hunter, Nancy Henderson, and Gay H ay Donehoo. Donehoo We also a welcomed our new Agent Brian LeJune! Happy Birthday: Sylvia Alvarez, Nancy Henderson, and B Tracie Pierce. Tr WOODLANDS: Linda Startz and family (husband, John, children, Meghan, Amy and Jonathan, plus Amy’s new husband, Jared) all went to Belize for a week over Christmas for an amazing family vacation/family Christmas AND for Amy and Jared’s honeymoon. How many newlyweds take their families with them on their honeymoon? It was a beautiful 79 degrees there every day (their winter) so they relaxed, played on the beach and in the Caribbean Sea (snorkeling, kayaking, etc.) and enjoyed some wonderful family time together. While the rest had to return home to the “real world” after a week, Amy and Jared remained in Belize and are spending the next 3 months traveling throughout Central America (Costa Rica, Panama, etc.) for their “dream honeymoon.” The stories and photos they email us are priceless! Jonathan just started his own business at 23- Mass Catalyst, an auction-based investment crowdfunding platform that connects businesses with investors, allowing businesses to auction equity or debt while giving investors access to unique investment opportunities. Daughter Meghan just started her final semester at UT School of Nursing in Houston and will graduate this May. 2014 was an amazing (and busy) year for the Startz family! Judy Zimmerman and husband Chal flew out to California to see the Rose Parade in beautiful Pasadena (this had been on their bucket list!), visited with Nicole’s mom in the mountains of Oak Glen, and finished off their trip with four days in Palm Springs... Chal and Judy are now on a 3 week cruise through the Carribean, stopping at 14 ports! Meanwhile, Kurt and Nicole Zimmerman celebrated their TENTH WEDDING ANNIVERSARY with a trip to Fredericksburg and Austin. The Zimmerman Team is feeling refreshed in anticipation of a great year! Cheri Young volunteered at the American Heart Association’s Heart Ball. This event is personal to her as a friend of hers had a heart attack last year as well as her Mom who has also suffered ha a stroke and heart attack... The 20th annual Montgomery County Heart Ball was held on February 21st at the Woodlands Wa Waterway Marriott. Ba e way Ma o . Our Heart Ball is a meaningful fundraising gala O for the American Heart Association (AHA), a fo national health organization, whose sole mission na is big, but incredibly important: to build healthier lives, free from cardiovascular diseases and liv stroke... t k We W would ld like li to welcome James Stanczak to BHGRE. He ran for Congress in 2012 and 2014, coming in second both times. He has a blended family of 7 children and can’t wait to see what 2015 has in store for him! Kate Malito and Husband Brian celebrated brated their second Anniversary in Vegas- Congrats to the two of them! Oya Inanc attended CRS “GAINING THE EDGE G – SSELL-A-BRATION 2015” in Las Vegas on Feb 16th-17th. It was organized by b the Council of Residential Specialists... Sell-a-Bration is the only event ev in the industry that is specifically for CRS Designees, candidates and a those interested in improving their business through world-class education. This annual th event attracts hundreds of top-producing ev Realtors who are seeking to improve their R business and increase their referral networks b through high-quality ed education and networking. This year’s program featured over 30 educational sessions covering real-world, business practices delivered by successful, proven practitioners... Nancy Johnson and husband just returned from a 12-day cruise to five beautiful She b tif l IIslands. l d Sh also added three new great-grandchildren to our already 25 we had. So now they have 28 great grand’s, 42 grandchildren and d 15 children between Doug and herself! Life is good and she sure has had so many Blessings since she and Doug got married almost 2 years ye ago... Brad Carlson’s youngest daughter Sydney celebrated her Senior Presentation for National Charity ce League (a mother and daughter organization) in February. Le She S was honored with one of the highest awards, The Modelette Award, as well as being the M past p Chapter President of her class. Her H Grandfather, Bob, and his wife, Karen, came down from Lawrence, K Kansas to attend K d the h ceremony. Heather Carlson was recognized with Sydney for her volunteer work for the chapter as well. We are very proud of everything Sydney has accomplished and look forward to her continued achievements in college next year!
March 2015
inhouse house
Breaking News: Gary Greene takes top award in the BHGRE Network for closed units and Community Involvement award at 2015 BHGRE Fusion Conference in Vegas!
Relocation Wins Top CARTUS Awards Just one year after Houston’s largest broker joined Cartus, the industry leader in relocation support for organizations worldwide, BHGRE Gary Greene’s Relocation department has scored three more awards this month, this time receiving a Platinum Award, Real Estate Services Award, and Five Star Award from the Cartus Broker Network. The awards were presented at the annual Broker Network International Conference held at the JW Marriott Desert Springs Resort and Spa in Palm Desert, California. Cartus is a worldwide leader in employee relocation solutions, and Platinum is the highest level of the Excellence Awards presented to principal brokers. Excellence Award recognition is based on performance results related to a wide variety of goals including customer service, cost management, and effective analysis and marketing of homes. Fewer than 26 percent of the Network’s principal brokers achieved Platinum-level recognition for their 2014 performance. The Five Star Award recognizes brokers who have met or exceeded their individual objectives for outgoing broker-to-broker referral closings during the calendar year. “This recognition, after only our first full year as a principal broker in the Cartus network, validates the dedication of our agents to helping families in their relocation to Houston,” said managing partner Marilyn Eiland. “Receiving these awards is a huge honor, and something that was a goal we’ve worked for consistently throughout 2014,” said Pattie Huey, Relocation Director for Gary Greene. “Our entire staff, as well as our agents who submitted referrals last year, put a committed effort into achieving the best results for their clients
aand Cartus.” Pattie, as well as Owner Mark Woodroof and Relocation M aagents Rachel Holden and Kristen BBrown were on hand in Palm Desert to accept the awards from D CCartus. Thanks and Congratulations to the whole team- Cindy Elsner, KKaylon Alexander, Meredith Loving, Debbie Williams, Charles Miller D work in 2014 and beyond. and Kamilah Sage for their hard w
2014 Awards MeetingLots of Fun,, Lots of Photos!
W wish We i h we had h d room to t show h every greatt photo h t from f our company awards breakfast in February, but since we don’t, get on the internet and head to our Facebook page! The link can be found on the front page of www.GaryGreene.com by scrolling to the bottom and clicking the Facebook icon! Give us a like when you get there, then click on the Photos tab and look for the 2014 awards album!