I had an old friend who always said "a lot of people get really lucky for a really long time" and this staying has stuck with me over the years as I've witnessed near-misses time and again.
When I got my real estate license I didn't necessarily have a plan. I didn't know if I would be any good at if or if people would trust me. I certainly didn't know that nearly 8 years later I would have established such a wonderful community of 100's of people and that giving back would become such an important part of my business.
Last year we were still reeling from an avalanche that took 4 lovely souls from this world and I knew that I wanted to be able to host an avalanche awareness clinic for my friend and clients. We rented out Bewilder Brewing and my friend Tony Pavlantos presented the Know Before You Go curriculum for 85 of my closest folks. It was a huge success with food and drinks and a raffle that raised about $500 that all went directly to the Utah Avalanche Center. In that moment I knew that I wanted to host this event every year so that it could become something that people could rely upon.
This year (well, 2022) I bought a new home for myself that would be big enough to host events. It is right next to a library with an incredible multi purpose room that is perfect for events like this. We had the event there and then walked next door to my house for food and drinks and a fundraising raffle for the Utah Avalanche Center. With a free venue I was able to match donations up to $500. Incredible people and businesses rallied and we got raffle donations from KÜHL, Petzl, Outlook Window Cleaning, Tommy Chandler Photography & Universal Creative SLC Framing, Feldman's Deli, The Front Climbing Club, and a private doaation of a Nest Thermostat! I am so proud to say that we raised a whopping $1120 that will go to the Utah Avalanche Center.
I can't stress the importance of the Utah Avalanche Center in our community. I nearly do not know a person in the Wasatch that at some point doesn't access avalanche terrain in the winter. Whether they backcountry ski or snowshoe, ski on piste, or simply walk their dogs in the foothills, they are probably near some potential avalanche slope. Through the daily avalanche report, this organization keeps us up to date and hopefully safe when we access these high risk mountains.
I want to thank, from the bottom of my heart, the folks at the Utah Avalanche Center, the businesses who kindly and generously supported our event this year, and each and every friend and client who attended my event. We even had some folks who came last year as well, which makes me particularly happy because a refresher at the start of the season is totally crucial in my book. Love you, mean it.
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