3 minute read
Recapping Scenes from a Busy Arena
THE MARCH GOES ON AS OUR ASSOCIATION LIVES OUT THIS YEAR’S THEME, “REALTORS® IN THE ARENA.” BEING IN THE ARENA MEANS BEING INVOLVED AND STRIVING TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE FOR OUR MEMBERS, OUR CUSTOMERS AND CLIENTS, OUR COMMUNITIES AND OUR STATE AND NATION.
In the previous issue of Insight, I wrote about the our Legislative Meetings in Raleigh and the NAR MidYear Meetings in Washington, D.C., including the REALTOR® Rally, where an estimated 13,500 REALTORS® gathered at the Washington Monument to rally for private property rights and housing affordability.
On July 31, the arena came home to Grandover Resort in Greensboro, where we hosted the firstever Real Estate Summit. This was a hugely successful event featuring a lineup of wellknown state and national experts on real estate, the economy and politics. We give special thanks to the major sponsors who joined with us to make this event possible: BB&T, Piedmont Natural Gas and Time Warner Cable Media. Witnessed by more than 200 business leaders, a strong case was made during the daylong event for the important role that real estate plays in the ongoing economic recovery.
Charlotte joined the arena on Sept. 5 as the Democratic National Convention came to North Carolina. In fulfilling an initiative in our 2012 Strategic Plan, we maintained a strong presence during this onceinalifetime event and successfully shared the REALTOR® message with elected officials and others of significant influence. We cohosted, with the Charlotte Regional REALTOR® Association, a breakfast that was attended by Congressman Mel Watt, local elected officials, convention delegates in our industry, and others. We also were honored to have a large delegation of NAR leaders join us for the breakfast, which featured NAR First Vice President Steve Brown as the keynote speaker. Additionally, in August and September we’re displaying 10 electronic billboards in the Charlotte Metro area with REALTOR® advocacy messages. This effort is collaboration with a group of local associations and was funded by both NAR and NCAR Issues Mobilization. (For more details, see Page 20.)
Next the arena moved to historic Savannah for the joint NCSC REALTORS® Conference & Expo. In addition to great speakers, education and networking, we recognized some of our great members with special awards and announced the results of our elections. NCAR committees and the Board of Directors also met during the conference and accomplished significant work in moving our Association forward.
I greatly appreciate all of the “REALTORS® in the Arena” who helped plan and who participated in these events. I also offer special thanks to our great staff members for their work in making each of these events a success. The arena is fast paced and takes us to a lot of places as we work to fulfill our mission to enhance the success of our members and improve the quality of life in North Carolina.
Sincerely,
Lou Baldwin
Key Dates in the Coming Months
Oct. 8GRI 201: Business PlanningWilmington
Oct. 9GRI 202: Business EthicsWilmington
Oct. 22GRI 104: Tax PlanningCharlotte
Oct. 23GRI 302: Residential as an InvestmentCharlotte
Nov. 7-12NAR Conference & ExpoOrlando, Fla.
Nov. 28GRI 303: Pricing PropertiesCary
Nov. 29GRI 204: Trends in Real EstateCary
Dec. 5GRI 203: Legal IssuesCharlotte
Dec. 6GRI 103: Contract to ClosingCharlotte
Jan. 22-25Vision Quest/Inaugural MeetingsWilmington
April 22-24NC REALTORS® Legislative MeetingsRaleigh
May 13-17NAR Mid-Year MeetingsWashington
Sept. 14-17NC REALTORS® Convention & ExpoAsheville
Contact Us: Members of the NC REALTORS® staff can be reached Monday through Friday during regular business hours of 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at 336-294-1415 or via email using the person’s first initial and last name@ncrealtors.org. Our fax number is 336-299-7872.
Administrative Andrea Bushnell Executive Vice President 336-808-4220
Anne Shoemaker Chief Operating Officer 336-808-4229
Bryan Jenkins Chief Financial Officer 336-294-3112
Denise Daly Membership Records Coordinator/Bookkeeper 336-808-4223
Sherry Harris Administrative Assistant 336-808-4230
Amanda Lowe Accounting Assistant 336-217-1048
Phyllis Lycan Accountant 336-808-4224
Donna Peterson Executive Assistant 336-808-4221
Sarah Beth Coggin Partners Program Manager 336-217-1047
Blair Wilburn Business Development Manager 336-808-4228
Communications & Marketing
Kevin Brafford Director of Communications and Marketing 336-808-4225
Samantha Ashburn Electronic Communications Manager 336-808-4226
Barbara West Communications Specialist 336-808-4227
Legislative Cady Thomas Director of Government Affairs 919-573-0996
David McGowan Director of Regulatory Affairs 919-573-0994
Julie Woodson Director of Political Communications 919-573-0992
Kristin Miller RPAC Manager 919-573-0995
Nicole Arnold Shared Local GAD 336-808-4237
Professional Development Ellie Edwards Director of Professional Development 336-808-4231
Legal
Will Martin General Counsel 336-808-4238
Kay Bailey Legal Assistant 336-808-4235
Events Mandy Lowe Events Director 336-808-4236
Keri Epps-Rashad Meeting Planner and EXPO Manager 336-217-1049
BY KEVIN BRAFFORD EDITOR
