Two local real estate agents are donating a portion of the commission they’ve made on Oromocto houses they’ve sold to the Oromocto and Area SPCA. Every year, Valerie Forward and Misty Myers, REALTORS® at Re/Max Group Four Realty, decide on a charity and donate back to the community. This year, Myers suggested the SPCA and they decided to save four per cent of their commission on sold listings in Oromocto.
“It’s quite a bit that came up,” Forward said of the more than $1,400 donation. “With the amount of houses down here we thought it might not be that much but it turned out to be a sizable amount.”
Forward said every year the Re/Max office takes part in various fundraising events but she and Myers decided this initiative was one the two of them could do on their own, to really make a difference.
“We work hard all year and this is a way we can do something to give back,” she said. “We go into homes and almost everyone has two or three animals, from cats and dogs to iguanas, snakes and rats. Their pets are important to them.”
Forward said one time she was selling a house and discovered the owners had left a dog tied in the back. That cruelty stayed with her, she said and she was thinking of that situation, and the care that animal received, as she made the donation.
“I can’t help but think of that dog today and I’m really pleased that with this donation we can help others just like that,” she said.
“Misty is an animal lover. I am an animal lover and we decided this was a great place to donate. Now that we know about the expensive vet bills that the SPCA is facing we hope we can inspire our colleagues to follow suit and donate to the SPCA to help them as well.”
SPCA board member Krista Munn said this donation was very exciting. “This is so generous. We didn’t know at first how much the amount would be but when it turned out to be over $1,400 we were so thrilled. This has been a busy year with all of the seizures and expensive vet bills and caring for all of the animals has been extremely costly. This is very exciting and great news for us,” Munn said.
She said it’s awesome to meet people who come to them on their own like Forward and Myers, eager to lend a hand. “We seek out donations all the time but when people come forward and say they want to do this we’re really excited and it means a lot.”
Pictured (left to right): REALTOR® Valerie Forward, SPCA board member Krista Munn, and REALTOR® Misty Myers.
Originally published in Oromocto This Week.
