REALTOR OF THE YEAR
REALTOR® Of the Year 2010
Betsy West
724-222-6550 x 335
Email: betsywest@northwood.com
Northwood’s West Named REALTOR® of the Year
By Mike Ference
Betsy West, AB, ABR, from Northwood Realty Services in Washington, PA was named REALTOR® of the year by the Washington-Greene Association of REALTORS® (WGAR). West was honored at the annual installation luncheon on December 9, 2010 at Jeremiah’s Banquet facility. The award honors an individual for meritorious contributions to the advancement of their profession and the real estate community at large.
According to Jack Gallik, manager of the Washington branch of Northwood, Betsy is the consummate professional, always has been and always will be. “She has proven to be an
asset not only to the office, but to her fellow agents as well. We are very proud to have her as part of our family.”
West has been active in the WGAR for several years, the past two as president. While proud of what the WGAR accomplished during her tenure, she readily attributed the success to the people who served as her executive officers and on the board. She noted the valuable additions of Josie D’Orazio as association executive, and Washington County attorney Jim Liekar as WGAR’s legal council.
“Working as a team, we increased our membership from 300 to 340 agents and affiliates in our first year, launched a new website in 2009, moved into new headquarters in Washington’s Freedom Center, and established a professional standards and ethics committee that has been trained on the state and national levels” she explained. “We are also in the process of bringing broker license classes to Washington.”
West began her career at Bell Telephone. “I enjoyed 12 years with a great company and great people, and I only quit to raise our two boys, Bill and Marc,” she said. As a stay-at-home mom, she started a home-based business as a Watkins distributor to supplement the family income and keep active. The business was so successful that her husband Bill soon quit his job to join her. Eventually they grew into a multi-million-dollar distributorship, the second largest in the United States and Canada.
They took advantage of an opportunity to retire as Watkins distributors, but after a few years of early retirement, Betsy began a new career in real estate. She joined Northwood Realty in 2002 — and six months later; Bill secured his real estate license as well.
“Northwood is a great match; it’s a family-oriented agency, conservative in its procedures and policies, and concerned about people helping people,” West said.
The Wests live in South Franklin Township. In their spare time, they have served Christian organizations like Crossing the Jordan Health Center, Washington County Men’s Prayer Breakfast, Precept Ministries and Harvest Evangelism. In all these organizations, the primary goal is bringing the church, marketplace and government leaders together to meet the needs of the citizens. “We’re also active in the Washington County Chamber of Commerce,” West added. “It’s a great opportunity to mingle with the cream of the crop from the business community, government agencies and nonprofits.”
West believes that a passion for helping others is the root of her success in all of her endeavors. “I genuinely enjoy helping others — and it is especially fun when it comes to helping a family buy a home,” she said.
The WGAR has proudly served the real estate professionals of Washington and Greene Counties in Southwestern Pennsylvania since 1925. WGAR is the voice of real estate in these counties and has over 350 members and affiliate members. For more information, visit www.wgar.org , call 724-228-0500 or email info@wgar.org. The office is located in the Freedom Center, Suite 303, at 31 E Chestnut St. in downtown Washington.
The REALTOR® of the Year Award is the greatest honor bestowed upon a REALTOR® by their peers at the local level. The award recognizes a REALTOR® for meritorious contributions to the advancement of their profession and the real estate community at large.
The purpose of the Award is to: recognize outstanding REALTOR® members of our Association for the effort and work expended in the interest of their fellow REALTORS®, their profession, and the real estate community at large; demonstrate the outstanding work done by REALTORS® to the general public; identify those REALTORS® best suited for leadership positions; and foster a spirit of camaraderie among those who are in a position to do much of the productive work in local associations/boards, the state association, and the national association.
All REALTOR® members are eligible for nomination.
