Day in the Life

Kentucky Trip for BHHS Conference

I arrived back home in Maine on a cold day in March. It was 2020 and I was returning from Nashville, the site of the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Convention and much welcomed warmer weather. My fellow attendees and I had been cautious in our travel plans, being slightly nervous about a new flu-like virus that was making headlines in the news. There had been no handshakes or hugs when networking with fellow agents from across the country and no touching of door knobs or elevator buttons. Convention vendors were providing branded small bottles of sanitizer as their take away gifts. When the convention ended, we had flown out of Nashville on a Wednesday and by Friday, the city was shut down and turned into a ghost town overnight. Shops, restaurants and downtown sidewalks were silent and empty. It had a name. COVID-19 ….. A global pandemic had begun.

On that day in March, 2020, I was sitting in my office playing catch up from my days in Nashville. I was worried. How was COVID-19 going to impact my business? The days that soon followed were slow. The month of April yielded no closings. And then I was back to work as a Governor-sanctioned “essential worker” and work continued with new safety protocols and a new sense of normalcy.

There was no convention for me in 2021 which made this year’s convention in Kentucky so exciting. I was flying for the first time in 2 years. I had been counting down the days, since January, to my departure date. I was excited to see old friends, the out of state agents that I continued networking with throughout the Pandemic. I was excited to travel to a state that would be my first time visiting …. I was excited to just be leaving the state in general. 2021 has been a good year, a better year than 2020. I was blessed to have been able to have helped so many families find housing or move on from homes to new adventures.

At the year end of 2021, I knew that I had exceeded my past sales volume of any prior year and had achieved a new level of standing, the President’s Circle. I had amazing clients and am very thankful for all their support and grateful for putting their trust in me. At this new level, I had earned the right to attend Mastermind sessions at the convention, open to only those agents achieving this level. I would proudly be wearing the blue ribbon attached to my convention name badge that indicated “President’s Circle”. I was proud to be a part of the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Network.

One of this year’s keynote speakers at the convention represented careers and lifestyle not necessarily real estate related but was relatable to our lives and work as agents. They shared stories of overcoming obstacles and learning to adapt to change and grow, what we face and deal with daily as real estate agents. Magie Cook (birth name, Magdalena De La Cruz Cook-Garcia) grew up in poverty along with 68 brothers and sisters. She persevered. Being athletic and a natural in playing basketball she had hopes of playing basketball for the Mexican National Team until she broke her collarbone shortly before the tryouts. Told she wouldn’t be able to play, she persevered and proved them wrong. She immigrated to the US on a basketball scholarship at the University of Charleston in West Virginia. After college graduation she found herself unable to obtain work and became homeless. She persevered. She entered a Fresh Salsa competition for the state and unanimously won. She received $800 to start a business. Not knowing anything about business but filled with perseverance, she created Maggie’s All-Natural Fresh Salsas & Dips, a company that grew into a multi-million dollar business within four years and distributed products across 38 states to major supermarkets such as Wal-Mart, Sam’s Club, Whole Foods and many more. At the height of its success in 2015, Maggie’s Salsa sold to Campbell’s Soup. After launching a successful business career, Cook returned to Mexico and rescued 31 orphaned children from a drug cartel. She started a movement with her mission to solve the generational problem of human trafficking. When life kept giving her obstacles, she overcame them all. She persevered. From orphanage to millionaire.

The convention wasn’t all work and no play. We were in Kentucky, known for its bourbon and racing, and we enjoyed both. Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices had secured Churchill Downs for an evening of limited races, games, and food for an exclusive private BHHS party. Mint Julep was the drink of choice for the event. Two races were conducted. The start of each race was heralded by the traditional blowing of the trumpet. The horses had names like Flying Fury, Cosmic Julep, Magic Money, Mister Whiskey, and my favorite, Colonel Hot Brown, the latter one being the winner of his race. Since 1875, the Kentucky Derby has been held every year on the first Saturday in May at Louisville's Churchill Downs Racetrack, making it the longest continuously held sporting event in the United States.

Of course we needed to be adorned with the appropriate attire for a night at the races. Hat making workshops were held prior to the night’s festivities to create your own Kentucky-Derby worthy hat. With a hot glue gun and plethora of feathers in hand we designed our creations. We had so much fun checking out the assortment of hats that had been created and enthusiastically being worn that night.

Being tourists in Kentucky, of course we had to experience a Bourbon tasting. The visitor center suggested Justin’s House of Bourbon, stated as Kentucky’s premier vintage whiskey shop. They carry the biggest selection of rare vintage bourbon, nothing my pocketbook and novice palate could handle, but also offer a huge selection of bourbon and rye from distilleries big and small that were more manageable in taste and price. Populated by distilleries, you can see that Bourbon is an integral part of Louisville's economy and the state’s identity. Both the drinks and the food were Bourbon-centric. I’ve used Bourbon in my cooking before for sauces and stews, but not to the degree as seen on the Louisville restaurant menus. Half a dozen mini bottles of assorted bourbons made it home as gifts for friends and family.

Although it was only a few days being away from home, it felt like so much more. It was a chance to ponder all the experiences that led me to my successes both personal and professional of the year that was 2021. It gave me the chance to recharge for the year that lay before me and it gave me the chance to just breathe and to enjoy those moments in Kentucky.