For Immediate Release:
December 8, 2009
REALTORS® AWARDED FOR COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
NJAR® Good Neighbor Awards Presented at Triple Play
(Atlantic City, NJ) The New Jersey Association of REALTORS® (NJAR®) presented three members with NJAR® Good Neighbor Awards during an awards session at the Triple Play REALTOR® Convention and Trade Expo in Atlantic City today. The awards recognize individuals who have made extraordinary commitments to community service programs throughout the state.
"A common mantra in our industry is ‘All real estate is local,'" said 2009 NJAR® President Diane Dilzell, CRS, e-PRO. "I cannot stress that enough when it comes to these NJAR® Good Neighbor Award winners. Each of them has gone above and beyond in their efforts to improve the quality of life for residents where they live and work. The drive and the commitment they each dedicate toward their cause says something about the character of these individuals."
The 2009 winners are as follows:
FIRST PLACE
Samuel Thomas, Jr.
Award: $2,500 for QUEST Community Outreach
A salesperson with Imani Realty & Associates in Willingboro, N.J., Thomas founded QUEST Community Outreach in 1977 to rescue people just when they need help the most. At Tabernacle Baptist Church, where Thomas is a deacon, he and his 110 volunteers provide an array of services to alleviate physical and spiritual pain. The organization also supports a soup kitchen and food pantry. The soup kitchen, which opened in 1998, served 10,000 meals last year, and Thomas says the number of visitors has increased by six percent in 2009.
Other QUEST programs include distributing clothing and toiletries, bringing holiday cheer to nursing home residents, teaching sign language, and roaming the winter streets to deliver food to the homeless.
QUEST, which stands for Quality, Understanding, Encouragement, Sacrifices and Togetherness, has also established an Angel Tree program that provides holiday gifts for the children of parents who are in prison. And recently, the organization started helping latchkey children in the community, which has its share of urban troubles, including drugs and gangs. Thomas is working to launch an after-school program, where kids can find meals, tutoring, computer classes, and green-job training; he expects to start with about 50 children by spring.
Thomas is a member of the Burlington Camden County Association of REALTORS®. He is also one of the 2009 winners of REALTOR® Magazine's Good Neighbor Awards, from the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®.
SECOND PLACE
Diane Schilke
Award: $1,500 for the Wellness Community of Central New Jersey
In addition to serving as a sales associate with RE/MAX Preferred Professionals in Hillsborough, N.J., Schilke serves on the Board of Trustees of The Wellness Community (TWC) of Central New Jersey. She has served on the Board since 2005 and has since played a role in many avenues of the organization, from fund-raising to office facilities and governance.
TWC's mission is "to help people affected by cancer enhance their health and well-being through participation in a professional program of emotional support, education and hope." TWC of Central New Jersey offers programs and services to individuals with cancer living in the communities spanning six New Jersey counties. Activities include gentle exercise and stress management programs, support groups and educational sessions.
As chair of TWC's largest fund-raiser, the Strides for Hope half marathon, she effectively tripled the participation and funds raised from 2006 to 2009. In her four years of leadership, the event has raised $524,726. During Schilke's tenure as a trustee, TWC has provided programs and services to more than 2,500 individuals affected by cancer.
Schilke is a member of the Hunterdon/Somerset Association of REALTORS®.
THIRD PLACE
Robin Bahr
Award: $1,000 for the American Cancer Society's Relay for Life
A sales agent with Century 21 At the Shore Realty in Bayville, N.J. and member of the Ocean County Board of REALTORS®, Bahr is active in her local community. She is a 12-year volunteer for Relay for Life, which is the American Cancer Society's largest collective fund-raiser, often held at a track or path in communities all over the world. Relay for Life events are held to raise funds for research, raise awareness for the disease, but most importantly to recognize survivors and stand up to cancer.
Earlier this year, Bahr, with the help of her family, friends and colleagues, organized an event in her community to benefit local students and the American Cancer Society (ACS). Touched by her daughter's discovery that many local girls would not be attending prom this past year due to financial circumstances, Bahr launched "Patti's Prom Dress Project" (named after a friend diagnosed with cancer) and began the mission of collecting donated dresses, shoes, handbags and accessories from high school and college students in the area. She solicited prom packages from local vendors, such as hair appointments, limousine rides and other gift certificates to give away to "Patti's Prom Dress Project" attendees. Approximately 1,900 dresses were collected for those in need to purchase at the cost of a small donation. Over $5,000 was collected for the ACS at the event.
After being displayed in a local storefront for more donations, the remaining 500 dresses were given to a foundation hosting a "Cancer Survivor's Prom," which holds a gala prom event for cancer survivors every five years.
Profiles of the winners will be featured on
www.njar.com/awards/gn. Photos of the winners will also be made available to download.
The New Jersey Association of REALTORS®, with approximately 50,000 REALTOR® and REALTOR-ASSOCIATE® members, is one of the largest trade organizations in the state. NJAR®'s membership is comprised of real estate professionals who subscribe to a strict Code of Ethics and are members of the national and local REALTOR® organizations. As the leading advocate for the real estate industry and private property rights in New Jersey, NJAR® is committed to protecting the dream of homeownership. For more information, please visit www.njar.com.
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