Picture of the Week - The Governors

The Governors©

My term as Chair of the Real Estate Foundation of British Columbia (REFBC) comes to a close at the end of this month and with that change two, of our five, Governors leave (Barry Brown-John and Cheryl Kathler). I brought my camera to a farewell dinner event on Friday to capture the moment but was not satisfied with result, a poor 400 ISO setting left, a less than complimentary photograph - my only chance was to play around a bit with the image which I have. I hope I got it right – I like the way I am smiling (I am in the middle at the back).

There are a number of things that I enjoy about this image, the traditional group pose, the rich earthy colours, the solid forms of the Governors as one mass in an undefined Picasso-like abstract world. For me personally the 2009-2010 period was a time of immense transformation; I like to say that “2009 was the longest 4 years of my life”. This was due in large extent to the financial meltdown of 2008 - money. The lack of funds meant a lot of good projects were left only partly funded or not funded at all. It forced us to re-examine nearly everything, reinvent and refocus.

From a strategic planning session in 2009 we agreed that our direction is to fearlessly seek out land use learning, research and other projects that are innovative, collaborative, transferable, and sustainable with a special focus on issues just emerging. That is a mouthful but you have to dream big – our strategic vision is that, in terms of land use knowledge and practice, BC should be a model for the world.

The REFBC has been a significant force in this province thanks to the efforts of an excellent staff and the labours of so many Governors that have gone on before me. Over 110 BC communities have received monies that add up to over 55 million. Check it out at http://www.refbc.com/. It was my privilege to have worked with the other Governors and our fine staff this past year.

If you enjoyed reading this article, why not Subscribe to be notified of the next one?

Stephen Mullock is a Chilliwack real estate associate broker with 29 years of experience. He can be reached at Royal LePage Wheeler Cheam Realty, telephone 604-792-0077.

Click Here to hire Steve Mullock as your Realtor®, you’ll be happy you did.