Forming a New RESA (Real Estate Staging Association) Chapter in Metro Vancouver - and Giving Back
Are we ever excited to be working on organizing a new RESA Chapter in Metro Vancouver, B.C. So Far, we've had 3 meetings, and the energy has been amazing.
It's great to gather with other Home Stagers in Vancouver, and discuss ways to support the real estate staging industry as a whole, as well as each other. Yes, we're in competition with each other, but we are also collaborating for the better good of the home staging industry as a whole in Vancouver. To-date, we have about 32 members, and we're growing!
One of the first items on the agenda is to give back to our community. Our first speaker ever last week was Louise Edwards. She is referred to as "the Godmother of the Downtown Eastside Vancouver". Please check out my blog if you'd like to read more. Louise lives in Kamloops, and travels 366 kilometers (227 miles) to Vancouver, every 2 - 3 weeks. She collects donations from her community in Kamloops, then distributes them to the struggling women of the Downtown Eastside. At present, her goal is to help out Sereena House. This is an old hotel that has been turned into a refuge for women recovering from alcohol and drug abuse, or who have worked the streets and want to leave that life behind and start anew. These women are trying to move back into society and leave the hard street life behind them.
Sereena House is in dire need of furniture, artwork and ambiance. There is very little government assistance for this project, and this is where Louise Edwards and our Home Staging group comes in. We have pledged to help Louise and these women, by donating our time and resources to "fix up" Sereena House, and make it a more homey environment. We will be tackling the dining area, and the common room area, as well as the kitchen. We hope to bring in donated furniture, artwork and whatever else we can find, and create an ambiance that encourages the women to feel more at home in their environment.
I'll keep you posted on our progress, and will hopefully be able to post some photos of our project, once it's complete. At our RESA meeting, we were brain storming, and so many of us have art and used furniture that we could definitely part with. We also plan to mention our project to our clients who are moving house. Often, our home staging clients have lots of "stuff" that they'd like to get rid of before they move, and donating these items to Sereena House would be a great long-term thing to do.
Sally, you have been highlighted on STAGING STORIES and you get an extra big gold star for what you are doing...thanks for sharing with us...Mary Lou Teague
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