Perseverance Several weeks ago, we had the pleasure of attending Mega Agent Camp, a Keller Williams mini-convention held in Austin.  We were treated to three of the most inspirational speakers imaginable!  Perseverance was the connection! Homeless To HarvardLiz Murray was born in the Bronx to poor, drug-addicted, HIV-infected parents.  She became homeless at 15 when her mother died of AIDS and her father moved to a homeless shelter.  Liz  decided she could take one of two roads;  go to school, work as hard as she possibly could and see what happened or continue down the same path of her parents.  At the time, with an eighth grade education and 17 years old, she decided to complete high school in two years.  What happened next?  She was awarded a New York Times scholarship for needy students and accepted into Harvard University.  She left Harvard in 2003, to care for her sick father but continued her studies at Columbia University, to be closer to him.  In 2006 her father died of AIDS.  As of May 2008, she was back at Harvard working toward her degree with plans to graduate with a degree in psychology in June 2009.  (For more information, Google, Homeless to Harvard) Life Without LimbsNick Vajucic is a handsome, twenty-six years old, born in Australia without arms and legs.  His parents were given no reason for his medical issues.  At eight years old he wondered why this happened to him, felt his life was hopeless and there was no point in going to school.  Today he travels the world as an inspirational speaker, enjoying his passions, swimming, golfing and fishing!   Because of Nick’s unique personal story, he is able to speak to groups of all kinds. It gives him entree with both  young and old, impoverished, imprisoned, business people, children, young people, peoples of all races, those with disabilities and those without.  People are literally captivated and disarmed by the fact he can genuinely rejoice in his circumstances.(For more information, Google, Life Without Arms and Legs) Tommy EmmanuelThe second day of Mega Agent Camp, the agents from our Market Center were invited to sit on stage during Emmanuel’s performance.  Initially, not wanting to go on stage, I soon realized it was a happening!  Tommy Emmanuel’s unique style of playing guitar, which he calls “finger style” is akin to playing guitar the way a pianist plays piano, using all ten fingers.  He began playing  at age 4 by listening to the radio, learning by ear with no formal instruction. He didn’t realize that most musicians had a band backing them, just thought the musician and his guitar were making the sounds he heard.  Today, after a career that spans over four decades, he quips, “I save a lot of money by playing all the parts myself!”(For more information, Google, Tommy Emmanuel) 

Talk about some nice real estate!  We toured the new Cowboy Stadium last Friday and like we have heard, it is BIG, clean, well-planned and has most modern sports equipment known to man.  The imposing structure dwarfs houses and even the Walmart across the parking lot, is gleaming white and silver with very large doors on either side and a roof that opens.  It takes nine to twelve minutes to open the doors and roof and if opened, both ends of doors must be open to avoid a vacuum. The decision whether to play a game with the roof open must be made early, as once the game begins, the roof’s position can’t  change.  The field is said to have a six-inch crown, much less than Texas Stadium and built fifty feet below ground level.  The concrete base of the field is fourteen inches thick.  The roof is ninety feet above and if the Statue of Liberty was placed on center at the fifty yard line, the tip of the torch would lack about six or more inches touching the top.  Arches that are 30 feet high, seven feet wide and one quarter of a mile long, support the roof.  There are 800 bathrooms,1600 flat screen tvs and major speakers each the size of an eighteen wheeler! It is the only stadium where teams enter the field on the fifty yard line and also boasts of 300 ground level suites.   The letters below the BIG screen are five feet tall but look like font 16!  A tour is inexpensive and fun, so if you are curious, check it out.

As  Realtors at Keller Williams, we usually spend our days working to help families find or sell homes in our community.  We love what we do but recently had a rare opportunity to give back!

May 14, 2009, was a day when every Keller Williams Market Center across the nation and Canada had the opportunity to give back to their various communities.  It was the first annual Keller Williams RED Day!  Keller Williams has recently grown to the third largest real estate franchise in the United States!  Can you imagine 74,000 individuals working together helping others?

At Keller Williams Plano, our project was to spend the day at CITY PLACE…My Friend’s House. This is a lovely new home, around 10,000 sq ft, built for abused children in the Plano area.  Just FYI, in the past Plano has sent these children to surrounding communities for lack of a facility in our community.  Early on May 14th, you could see agents putting together cribs,  ironing new curtains and bed skirts, washing baby bottles, putting away new children’s clothing, all items donated by many of the businesses where we shop every day in Plano!  Other agents, all clad in red t-shirts, were landscapping, transporting or carrying in supplies, any job,big or small, to get this fabulous new home ready for the children’s arrival.  This was truly a great day in our Market Center and one we will be anxious to repeat next year!

If you would like to know more about a volunteer opportunity at CITY PLACE…My Friend’s House, visit their website at www.cityhouse.org/my_friends_house.html

Welcome to Nancie Przada’s Blog! This blog will provide you with valuable information, tips, and general insight into the real estate market in Plano.