Are We Too Busy To Be... Safe?

What a difference ActiveRain can make in our lives if we think about it. This morning my screen lit up before sunrise and I found myself reading a post by Margaret Rome about the murder of Ashley Okland, a Realtor® with Prudential in Des Moines, Iowa. Looking back, there was something different about this story. It was news but then again it was passed forward by one of us here on Active Rain. Whatever the reason, it hit home with me like a ton of bricks. I began remembering some of the open houses I did solo before I changed my MO and made sure I had a co-host.  As if I was on a mission, I began sending the story out in an email to others who I knew in our community would pass it forward through our office network, our Santa Fe Association of Realtors, our local WCR and CRS chapters, our Realtor Association of New Mexico and viral on my social media channels. 

Margaret Rome's post woke me up this morning as she took the time to make a difference. Then, I discovered Matt Grohe's post from Des Moines and learned more about the impact there. Tonight, I received this email from Les Sulgrove, 2011 President, Des Moines Area Association of Realtor.

Emily, thank you so much for caring and taking time to spread the word.  It is very important to follow through with educating agents.  I believe that even the smallest change in habit can make all the difference in the world.  Right now police have no suspects or motive and that is wearing very heavily on the minds and hearts of my membership. Keep spreading the word.  Probably the two best places to follow along with this story is at http://www.kcci.com or http://www.desmoinesregister.com     Be safe and educate. Les Sulgrove

His signature included the link to our Realtor.org library of resources on safety. And then, all of a sudden I remembered the blog I was going to write on ActiveRain in September 2010 during Realtor Safety week... and was too busy.

I am no longer to busy to be safe. I am adding www.realtor.org/safety to my email signature as a reminder never to forget to be aware and help others do the same. We can not change the past. We can only change how we react to the present. It is my hope as more of us tell this story to our peers, we can prevent it from happening again. Please, just do it!

Do you love Santa Fe? Are you thinking about relocating here? Are you wondering if the Santa Fe housing market has stabilized? Check out this link for Santa Fe home prices and updates for trends in your neighborhood. Or search all Santa Fe listings here. Follow me on Twitter or experience Santa Fe in real time by visiting BreakingSantaFeNews now. In between real estate, I write a monthly column on Social Networking in the HOME magazine, published by the Santa Fe New Mexican.