It is hard to believe this is my final article as president of the Santa Barbara Association of Realtors (SBAOR) for 2022. The year has seemed to fly by.

I have enjoyed every minute of leading this wonderful organization. It is has truly been my honor and privilege to be the spokesperson for more than 1,200 dedicated men and women whose goal is not only to help people realize the American Dream of homeownership, but to give back to our community in so many philanthropic and selfless ways.

I have been fortunate to have traveled a number of times this year, both within California and beyond on behalf of our organization and profession, and colleagues are are always impressed when I tell them I live and work in Santa Barbara. Not only because we live in one of the most beautiful places on the planet, but also because of the people, both within our profession and the wonderful people we represent.

We are so lucky to live and work in Paradise!

There are so many people I wish to thank for their support and guidance this year. I would like to start with the three local publications that have printed my articles this year; Noozhawk, The Santa Barbara Independent, and the Santa Barbara News-Press. Thank you for allowing me the platform to share my thoughts and views on so many topics.

It was my desire to educate people about what we do as Realtors on a daily basis, help them navigate the sometimes difficult process of buying and selling a home, and give interesting ideas about how to better take care of their home.

I am pleased to have heard from so many people — Realtors, locals, and from people all over the state that they enjoyed reading my stories.

Thank you to the amazing staff at the SBAOR. This team of dedicated professionals who run our association on a daily basis are tireless in their efforts to better serve our members, which translates into our Realtor members being able to better serve our clients.

Thank you to the Board of Directors and all the various committees of our association. You have all worked so hard to make sure our members have the tools, resources, and financial stability to do their jobs and help our clients.

Thank you to my business partners, first Amanda Barba, and now the amazing Cheylin MacKahan, for working extra hard with our clients, while I was tending to my role as president.

And finally, I would like to thank my beautiful wife Julie for her love and support, not just during this sometimes difficult year, but for always being the strong woman behind me. I could not have done this job without her.

Each year at our annual installation and awards luncheon (see my previous article about this wonderful day), the outgoing president gives out the President’s Award. This award goes to the non-SBAOR staff member who has helped and supported the president the most during their term. Each and every year it has been awarded to someone within our profession. That was until this year.

I was honored to give the 2022 Presidents Award to Julie Walsmith for everything I mentioned above, and much more.

In closing, I want to hand off these weekly articles to the 2023 SBAOR president, Todd Shea. I am confident Todd will share some amazing stories with everyone, and be a wonderful president for our association and the Santa Barbara community.