PEOPLE WHO CARE
NEW! PRESS RELEASE MAY 6, 2005 - ROOF IS AWARDED
DISTINGUISHED BUSINESS PARTNER AWARD FROM THE BERKELEY PUBLIC EDUCATION
FOUNDATION
I don't remember exactly how it began.
Perhaps it was in an office meeting. Or perhaps it
was just one of those thousands of times we were sitting around talking
shop.
It was 1985. Homelessness was an
issue emerging in the public’s consciousness. People were
appearing on Shattuck and Solano Avenue asking for food and money.
Unheard of! Here we were, helping people buy and sell homes every day,
and homelessness was growing in our own community. As agents, what could
we do? Someone mentioned that if we contributed even a small amount –
maybe $10 or $20 from each commission – we could come up with a fairly
sizable chunk by the end of the year. Somehow, we weren’t sure just
how, we thought that might help.
The math was impressive. Several hundred sales a
year. A little from each commission added up. It was even better if Red
Oak the company could make matching contributions from its share of each
commission.
The idea caught on. We talked more about it. Some
agents signed up immediately, others joined more slowly, but soon most
our agents were on board. By the end of the year, we had real money -
about $4,000 to donate. But to whom?
COMMITTEE FORMED
A committee of agents and owners was formed, dubbed
ROOF: Red Oak Opportunity Fund. The committee determined that the
contributions should go to organizations which did not otherwise receive
heavy funding. The committee felt that, in addition to decent housing,
good education was a major contributor to the quality of life in our
community. (Many of our agents are former public school teachers.)
We decided that 33% of ROOF funds would go to housing
organizations, 33% would go to education, and the remaining 33% would be
discretionary.
Committee members made recommendations based on
their own connections and preferences. We examined solicitations
received during the year.
ROOF GROWS
In the first years, ROOF simply mailed checks and
letters to the recipients. The response was gracious and heartfelt. We
received phone calls, letters, and visits from grateful volunteers,
expressing their thanks for our support. We in turn thanked them for
their dedicated work
After several years, the fund and its circle of
recipients grew. The committee decided that it was important for the
recipients to meet one another. We held our first ROOF award ceremony in
1997 at the Red Oak office, inviting our friends and clients to
participate. Several of our clients not only attended, but, even though
this was not the intent, by the end of the evening, they made their own
personal contributions.
Some of the education group recipients.
It was only after the gathering of the recipients
that I fully realized the impact of what we had done. I was not prepared
for the experience. I was profoundly moved. I met and talked face to
face with people who spent their days quietly working to help others,
without a lot of recognition, and certainly not much in the way of
monetary rewards. When they got
up to tell their stories, everyone in the room got a lump in their
throat and a glimpse of a life they did not know much about.
To me, the most moving part of the evening was
that, though they all needed and appreciated the money, what seemed to
be most important to the recipients was the recognition. To receive a check, unsolicited,
from a group of business people meant that someone “out there” had
noticed. Some seemed incredulous. Over and over
again, the recipients expressed their thanks, not just for the funds, but
for paying attention.
ROOF BECOMES A FOUNDATION
Years went by and ROOF prospered. In
1997, Mayor Shirley Dean of Berkeley issued a proclamation declaring a
"Red Oak Realty Week" for the city of Berkeley, in recognition
of our contributions to the community.
The following year, in 1998, an angel
appeared. One of my clients, who wishes to remain anonymous, was impressed
with the work ROOF was doing, and offered to match whatever funds we
raised during the year. To do so, ROOF had to formally become a 501(c)3
nonprofit charitable organization. We changed the last word in our acronym
from Fund to Foundation. All contributions are now tax deductible. The result is that we have
vastly increased the contributions not only from agents, but from
clients and business associates. As of 2007 ROOF's total
contributions to these worthy groups is fast approaching $1,000,000.
Youth Bike Adventures members describe how inner city kids get a
first-time-ever bike trip to the parks and a free lunch (click to
enlarge)
Of all the accomplishments of my
company, I am most proud of ROOF and the impact it has had on our
community. I am grateful to our agents and others who have so generously contributed
over the years.
The people who
run these organizations and their volunteers deserve not only our
financial support, but our recognition and our gratitude as well. It
sounds trite, but despite all the depressing nightly news reports, the fact
that there are people out there who have quietly dedicated their lives to
assisting others should give us all a welcome dash of hope for the world.
CONTRIBUTIONS WELCOME!
Here is your chance to help our community in a big way. Please
consider contributing whatever you can to help make a better quality of
life for those most in need:
