Andre Cushing reports: Well here we are at the final day of the GOP Convention ...
It's hard to believe as I sit here in the airport writing this that so much happened in so short a time. Another delegate said it well, “it feels like we have fit three weeks into one.” Our final day breakfast briefing was hosted by former Governor John McKernan and his wife Sen. Snowe. Our guest speaker was Frank Donatelli, Deputy Chair of the Republican Nat’l Committee. Frank served in two White Houses. He shared information on the historic nature of this election and what the results may mean to history.
During the day I went back to Civicfest to view more of exhibits and buy some convention memorabilia. I bought buttons, apparel, gift items and books then packed up 37 lbs of goodies and shipped them home (no lugging extra heavy bags on the plane.) I also went to a special appearance and book signing by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and his wife. I even got to ask him a question during Q&A! It was about his thoughts on the comparison of Gov Palin to another young reform Governor who was nominated VP, one of my favorites Teddy Roosevelt.
I then attended a reception for hosted by the group Republicans for Environmental Protection, where Theodore Roosevelt, IV was the featured speaker. I was really looking forward to meeting him but our transportation bus got stuck in rush hour traffic and I arrived just after he left to catch a plane back to NY. Well maybe another time.
Onto the convention and the concluding night. Things started off with a host of speakers, one of special note was Maine’s own Charlie Summers, running for Congress in the 1st Congressional District. A host of other speakers took the stage leading up to the finale where our presidential nominee would speak.
A video shared parts of Sen. McCain's life story and service to his county. It was a moving look at the man and set a special mood for the evening. Following it, Sen. McCain stepped onto the stage and strode to a podium set on a runway which allowed him to be in the crowd while he spoke (something he is fond of doing.) After his speech he was joined on stage by his whole family and Gov Palin & family. The evening climaxed with lots of confetti and balloons. It was a remarkable night that left us both energized and then exhausted.
As I mentioned in my Day 1 blog this was the third National Convention I attended. It was an incredible experience and I would urge some of you to also consider attending a convention some day. It leaves you with a special feeling and a better understanding of this unique process by which Americans choose their leaders. It is fascinating to many in the world that our elected leader willingly subject themselves to such pressure and scrutiny to get the position; and then will voluntarily relinquish it at the end of their term. It gives one a greater appreciation extraordinary system of government that we live with.
Andre Cushing is a REALTOR with ERA Dawson Bradford in Bangor
Andre Cushing reports: Hello again from Minneapolis/St Paul! Today was a full schedule of events starting with our Maine delegation breakfast briefing.
I visited Civicfest - which is a vibrant civic festival celebrating Minnesota and American history, democracy, and the U.S. Presidency. The event, produced by the Minneapolis Saint Paul 2008 Host Committee, features more than 35 exhibits including: historic memorabilia and artifacts, a scale model of the White House, a re-created Convention floor, a stage featuring live performances, an actual President’s official limousine, a full-scale replica of the White House Oval Office, multimedia and interactive exhibits featuring significant historical objects, an interactive kiosk that explores the lives and administrations of the twelve Presidents, and a 60,000 square-foot Marketplace.
This venue definitely will call for another day to explore it. I'm a real history buff and love looking at the displays and listening to the recordings of presidential speeches. There also were some great exhibits about Minnesota, history of businesses and noted figures. For example General Mills (who we all know for cereals) also was into aerospace and developed the ALVIN, the first deep diving submarine. Also the pacemaker, Post-it notes and Rollerblades were developed in Minnesota!
Today also is a full schedule of receptions. First at the invitation of Governor McKernan we attended “Republicans Supporting Higher Education," held at the Art Institute International Minnesota. The hurricane was still on our minds so I took some time to help with preparing comfort packs for delivery to the Gulf region. It was amazing to enter this big hall and see so many fellow delegates joining local volunteers at hundreds of tables assembling and pack these bags.
Then onto meet with my fellow REALTORS at the National Association of REALTORS (NAR) Reception where I met members of the NAR board and fellow delegates who are REALTORS. NAR President-Elect Charles McMillan welcomed us and shared that approximately 200 attendees to the convention are REALTORS which proved that we take public service very seriously and are willing to get involved. He also mentioned that several members of Congress have been or are REALTORS. Here's the link to the NAR site with information on both conventions, including interviews with attendees.
I attended a reception hosted by AT&T for the Maine & Vermont delegations where I met Vermont Governor Jim Douglas. Then time to go to the Xcel Center for the evening events. We heard from many speakers including former Maryland Lt.Gov. Michael Steele, who now chairs GOPAC. A special note: my daughter Grace (a senior at Simmons College) took a year sabbatical to work on his U.S. Senate race in 2006 and when she told his staff she was coming to the Convention he wanted her to work with him this week! She was able to help out and is really enjoying the convention (from a different perspective) travelling to media appearances and helping with his other speaking engagements.
The evening also saw NYC Mayor Rudy Giuliani, Govs. Mitt Romney & Mike Huckabee and former Senator Fred Thompson take the stage. Finally the featured event - Gov. Sarah Palin addressed the convention and what a powerful speech she offered!! It was a great coming out for this interesting and energetic VP candidate. From what I have read her speech had the largest television viewership of its kind in history.
This was also the night that nominations are made by the different state delegations. Rep. Josh Tardy (Newport) is the Maine delegation chair and got to make the nomination speech for us. We all cheered when Maine came up! Here's a picture of us on the big screen!
Andre Cushing is a REALTOR with ERA Dawson Bradford in Bangor
A Maine REALTOR's Report from Day 2 at the Republican National Convention:
Andre Cushing reports: Greetings again from Minneapolis. We opened the second day with a more traditional schedule. Now that the imminent danger from the hurricane has passed the focus transitioned to getting to know our candidate's background. We started with a breakfast meeting where we heard from several people who know John McCain: Carly Fiorina (former CEO of Hewlett Packard), Andy McCain, Dorcas Hardy (former commissioner for the Social Security Administration) and two military veterans, Retired Major General Ed Mechenbier (a fellow POW) and Captain Thomas Hudner spoke of his remarkable service.
Later in the day I attended a luncheon reception for legislators and candidates (I am running for a seat in the Maine House of Representatives to represent Hampden, Dixmont & Newburgh). I then did an interview with a blogger and a reporter for the Bangor Daily News on my campaign and my experience as a Mainer at the convention. After which it was time to head to the Xcel Center for the evening program.
The Tuesday schedule follows the theme proposed by Senator McCain of “Country First” and highlights the word “Service” in its offering of speakers, which included President George W. Bush (via satellite), First Lady Laura Bush, and others.
The most moving presentations to me were a special appearance by a gentleman Wes Gullett and his daughter, Mickey. They told the story of how Cindy McCain, while travelling in Bangladesh, stopped at Mother Theresa’s orphanage and was moved to adopt two babies with severe medical conditions and return them to the U.S. She and John adopted Bridget and their friends, the Gulletts, adopted Mickey. It offered a glimpse at the personal side of the McCains that we don’t always see in politics.
The politics heated up when featured speaker Sen. Fred Thompson took the stage and offered an energetic comparison of Senator McCain and Senator Obama. He brought the crowd to its feet repeatedly with his comments. Then Senator Joe Lieberman offered his endorsement and issued a call to Democrats and Independent voters to join him in supporting the McCain-Palin team. Another special moment came when Former President George H.W. Bush and Barbara Bush entered the hall. The entire convention paused as they were led to their seats to a warm ovation from those in attendance.
I must say this was a day was great experience even for someone like myself who has attended previous conventions.
Andre Cushing is a REALTOR with ERA Dawson Bradford in Bangor; pictured with Republican strategist Karl Rove
MAR asked two Maine REALTORS attending the major political party conventions to report on their activities there. Both agreed. [Note: NAR and MAR do not take positions on presidential races, but housing and other real estate related issues are part of major party discussions.]
Here's the Day One report from the Republican Convention:
Greetings from the 39th quadrennial Republican Convention in Minneapolis, Minnesota. My name is Andre Cushing and I am a REALTOR with ERA Dawson Bradford in Bangor, Maine. This is my third time attending a national convention (in 1980 I was a guest at the Detroit convention, 2004 I was a delegate in New York City, and this year I'm an alternate) and it is exciting to be at such a historic event.
This year's convention has been overshadowed by concern for events in the Gulf region as it has pummeled by Hurricane Gustav. Activities were shortened Monday at the request of Senator McCain to show respect for those who were facing adversity from the storm. The McCain campaign chartered a DC9 to ferry any delegates who wished to be back home to their states in the Gulf region to attend to their families and personal needs. A special response program has been set up at the Minneapolis Convention Center to prepare comfort packages which will be distributed to those displaced by the hurricane.
Minneapolis and St. Paul (where the Xcel Center is located) have done a great job in preparing to welcome the thousands of delegates and supporting casts for the convention. These are beautiful cities and the friendly attitude of all who we meet and deal with from shuttle drivers, hotel employees and service personnel to those related to the convention itself have been really great. They are wonderful ambassadors for their communities.
It is an exciting atmosphere and a unique dynamic where so many people from different walks of life, different ages and places come together to select our nominee for President and Vice President and conduct the other business necessary as a political entity.
Monday the convention opened with some basic housekeeping required in order to legally hold a convention and place the nominees names on the ballots in all fifty states and the U.S. territories. We had very few speeches out of respect for the focus on the hurricane's impact. The headline was a special appearance by First Lady Laura Bush and Cindy McCain who both took the stage to welcome the attendees and announce a special effort to raise funds for the five states that may most be impacted by the hurricane. I include the websites here (at this link) in the event any of you may wish to make a contribution to those efforts.
Stay tuned for more information as the convention continues through Thursday.
MAR is creating mini-sessions on video to provide member updates. Our first two are Linda Gifford explaining the recent changes to the MAR forms (August 2008). Note: on the first video Linda references 3 videos, but we did them on 2; and the second video cuts out before her last sentence which was basically saying thank you. (The video camera MAR used can only do videos of no more than exactly 10 minutes in length.)
Here's the link to the handout to make it more helpful to follow the changes discussed (requires log-in).
The first video is P&S changes; the second reviews other changed forms.
Cornelia Stockman reports: Each year NAR brings together the president-elects of the state associations, local boards and multiple listing services in Chicago to learn industry trends, new programs, and an outlook on the coming year when each will serve in president positions within the REALTOR organization.
Eight Maine REALTORS - the president-elects of Local Boards/Councils, MAR and MREIS - and 3 Association Executives (administrators) gathered for this year's NAR Leadership Summit in Chicago.
In the process of learning, listening and sharing, we developed as FRIENDS. There was the inspiration, the achievements, and the invitation to reach higher and grow stronger as individuals and as a group.
Instead of the media's "doom & gloom", we heard the real facts and forecasts from the best people in NAR. Reality testing by looking into past performance and designing for the future, remember there is “pent up demand” for housing was emphasized by speaker after speaker.
The quality of the speakers' presentations and the strength of authors reached into the past from Aristotle to Eisenhower and displayed the "big" picture. I loved the new NAR programs such as "Selling Green" and the “FHA Toolkit" to support what REALTORS in the present need; adapting to change, accommodating to the possibilities. The excellence of changes in REALTOR.com are a great source of in-depth information.
To sum up the NAR Leadership Summit:
F – Facts, FHA, Food, FUN
R – Responsible, resources
I – Innovators & innovation
E – Encouragement & enthusiasm
N – New programs of NAR
D – Do's & don'ts – legalities
S – Style & Success
The best of the best was all around us for the 2 days.
REALTOR Cornelia Stockman (Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, Kennebunk) will be the 2009 President of the York County Council of MAR. Pictured above: Chicago skyline; Tim Dunham (Pres-Elect, Androscoggin Valley); Kathy Townsend (Pres-Elect, Gr Portland), Kristine Triglione (Pres-Elect, Western Maine); Kelley Craig (Gr Portland AE), Cornelia Stockman; Tim Dunham, Helen Fox (Pres-Elect, Merrymeeting), Marcia Bartol (Bangor AE). Not pictured, but attending: Rita Yarnold (MAR Pres-Elect), Jack Taylor (MREIS Pres-Elect), Ken Duke (MREIS), Delores Landry (Bangor Pres-Elect)
From the Greater Portland Board of REALTORS®:
The Greater Portland Board of REALTORS® (GPBR) is beginning an initiative to create and continue the relationship between the local arts community and REALTORS®. The rich art community in Southern Maine makes the area a very desirable place to live.
To kickoff our efforts, the Greater Portland Board of REALTORS® is hosting an evening social at the Portland Museum of Art. We will be inviting local artists as well as REALTOR® members to come and stroll through several galleries while enjoying refreshments and each other!
Features live music from the popular Jerks of Grass and a raffle for original works from local artisans.
This event is different than any we have held before. There will be no cost to attend and no formal program. What a great way to spend a warm Thursday evening!
Event: Portland Museum of Art
Date: September 4, 2008
Time: 6-8pm
From Mary Kuykendall: I admit that when the proposal to move to electronic lockboxes first came up, I, like many others, balked. I flung my weight around and voted against them at every opportunity. None of that stuff for me!
There we were, happily slapping those little bronze boxes on anything with four walls and a doorknob. We didn’t even have to re-configure a new combination for each use. A three-letter code had been good enough for our grandparents, and it was certainly good enough for us.
So what if there were, at least, 6000 current and former agents who knew “The Code”? No matter; so did anyone who had ever seen, listed or sold a property in the state. Not to mention their neighbors, family members, paperboy and meter reader. Come to think of it, why did we even bother?
The fail-safe, back-up three-letter code, was used by some of the more venturesome of us, and the cutting edge policy of using Our Own Initials was the choice of only the most daring.
Then, a little over two years ago when we were still comfortably and blissfully ignorant of the world of technology and security available to us and following a convenient 8-hour tutorial, our lives began to change. Well, eight hours and a few brush-up sessions, e-mails, webinars, conferences, and frantic phone calls originating from freezing front porches.
While Mainers are, historically, a tolerant lot, change is accepted with speed outdistanced only by the pace of the Mendenhall Glacier. Never mind that these new gizmos would increase security, provide data regarding access, keep track of our CE credits, save gas, save time, save money--save your breath, because there wasn’t going to be any convincing of some of us. Myself included.
So. I grudgingly went to the training. I asked obnoxious questions. They were answered politely and patiently. I harrumphed. I turned the clumsy thing over in my hands and sighed. I got up and got myself a cookie. You can’t say I wasn’t going to get something out of the session. I followed the instructions in the little booklet and practiced. I mumbled to my neighbor at the table. I practiced some more. The darn thing seemed to work just like they said. That was discouraging. I went into the next room and picked up my card. Pretty cool. Had my picture on it. Hmm. Got a little retractable clip-on for my belt. Even cooler.
Back I went to the office. I still was far from convinced this was even an acceptable idea, and I certainly wasn’t ready to endorse it as a good one.
I put one of the boxes on my very next listing mainly because I had told my DB that I would give it a try, and because I was supposed to be setting an example for my co-workers. I was the first one in our office to use one. There’s always some cachet in that.
It went on easily and looked pretty nifty there on the front of the nice, new house. Kind of gave it a smart, “now” look. I liked that. The neighbors were curious and seemed impressed.
I was right proud of myself. Then while showing it off to my husband who was putting up my sign in the yard, I discovered I’d forgotten my PIN. What was it? The year my house was built? No, that didn’t seem to be it. Oh, wait a minute, a quick call to the handy number on the back of my keycard, a chat with a personable young man and I was shortly back in business.
A week passed and I got a phone message from the elderly gentleman whose home had the new lockbox. He was visiting from out of state and wanted to have the locks changed. Could I come down and get the new keys for the box? Sure. When I arrived with a client in tow, the owner was gone, but the new lockbox (which, as we all know, would cost me dearly if lost), was, as he had promised, on the back porch--still attached to the old doorknob and lock mechanism and part of the old door. In retrospect, I don’t know who changed his locks, but they surely did a thorough job of it.
I could tell it was going to get tricky from here on.
Removing the shackle from the lockbox (and you will have to admit that, love them as much as you may, they are heavy) while simultaneously keeping my keycard in the slot (I had to thread it through the steering wheel in order to fit the bulk still attached to the house’s lock into my car), reading and remembering the phone number, punching in the numbers, listening to and following the instructions being given over the phone, and swatting blackflies in the front seat with my client resignedly awaiting the outcome and probably wondering why she had ever been interested in this property and most assuredly doubting her choice of REALTOR, required significantly more than the two hands and one brain I had with me.
When the shackle did finally come out, flying across the front seat of my car and narrowly missing my client, her quick reflexes and good humor were all that saved a potentially-disastrous situation.
Given my extreme hesitation at the onset of this change in our lives, I have to say that this has been my only unpleasant encounter with the new contraptions.
I know that the more they are used, the easier it will get. I certainly agree that in some circumstances, they aren’t the best idea. I totally understand and empathize with those who have issues with them.
I wish the renewal was for more than 8 days. I wish they weren’t so heavy. I wish I didn’t have to remember yet one more PIN. I was glad to get the refund. I wish there was no cost involved at all in using them.
I really can’t say enough good things about the technical support that is available. AND, ok, I have to admit that I’ve changed my mind about them. I always hate to admit it when I’m wrong about something that I feel so strongly about.
I guess I’m S-E-T in my ways.
REALTOR Mary Kuykendall is President of the Bangor Board of REALTORS
Maine REALTOR Jim Cosgrove's company blog (Newcastle Square Realty, Damariscotta) was recently featured on a popular business blog as an example of "hyper local blogging" -- Meaning, providing content that shows many features of a local area - neighborhoods, towns, events.
Jim explains in the comments section: "We quickly decided that writing about homes was just going to be more of the same old same old so we started to talk about our area and that seemed to resonate. We have a lot of summer residents and they let us know that they really enjoyed keeping up with the goings on here in the winter. To date our most commented on post is still the one where we complained about the small size of the town Christmas tree one winter. (I think I used the phrase 'size does matter')."
Are you showing and/or discussing your local area in your blog?
The National Association of REALTORS (NAR) REALTORS Political Action Committee (RPAC) Trustees met in Maine to make a few million dollars worth of political and candidate contribution decisions. They stayed at the Portland Regency and Portland Harbor Hotels; and quite a few Trustees extended their meeting stay to take a Maine vacation. Special thanks to NAR President Dick Gaylord for his support in selecting Maine as a location for a NAR committee meeting. Here's his blog post about the event.
Maine REALTOR Kelly Sue Parker (Real Estate Exchange, Inc., Falmouth) is competing in Music Nation's "Next GAC Star" country music competition. She needs your votes.
They are currently on Round 7. It takes about 10-15 minutes to do this ...
1. Go to http://www.musicnation.com/
2. Click on the left hand side, Next GAC Star Competition
3. Go down to Popular Artist - she has been in the top 10 artists for the past few days OR at the top of the page go to “Find Artist” type in name Kelly Sue Parker and go to her profile. (IF NOT in the Popular Artist category)
4. Listen to the song entered in the competition “Something In My Eyes”
5. Then go to the top of the page and click on the Voting section “Click to Vote”
Once you get into the “Head to Head” you will see two artists that will load “Head to Head”. Once loaded:
1. Go to the top of your Browser and click the Back Arrow Button
2. Then Click the Forward Arrow Button
3. Continue to do so until you see her name come up in the “Head to Head” ready to compete
4. Click on the “Start Head to Head” listen to her song and listen to the other song
5. Then Click on “I prefer this one”… to VOTE…
6. You can check your votes at the bottom in the section of “My Votes”
Let's help get Kelly Sue Parker selected!
Cindy Butts reports:
MAR announced the winners of the "Your Piece of Maine" YouTube contest during the pre-game of the June 28 Sea Dogs game ....
Driving towards Portland on Saturday afternoon it was clear the rain was going to continue. A cool, continuous rain .... which doesn't encourage arriving early for a game. "Your Piece of Maine" tee shirts and a giant cardboard check were in danger of being drenched by the rain, but fortunately it was also Hannaford employee night -- they had a TENT set up, and generously let MAR staff store everything someplace dry.
It was fairly easy to find the contest winners, as many of them starred in their winning videos (we told them to meet us out front - a good idea when it's NOT raining) -- Grand Prize winner Brett Slater, Second Prize winner Lorraine Aromando, one of the Third Prize winners Jon Wadick (with ADORABLE son Logan who starred in the "Logan's Piece of Maine" video), and Callie Pecunies, the REALTOR winner.
Our YPOM Spokesperson Michelle Flaherty immediately knew to put the script in waterproof plastic ... and joined MAR Patti Lawton and the contestants on the field for the presentation. Michelle sounded GREAT over the stadium sound system (she has been a STAR in this whole experience) - and told everyone in the stands she hoped they too found their Piece of Maine.
The contestants clearly THRILLED to get their checks from Patti .... And then the GRAND PRIZE video played on the BIG screen. It was really, really cool to see it there - And as I sat in my very wet General Admission seat saw the row in front of me (the public) SWAYING along with the song!
Big thanks to the REALTOR members and Kelley Craig, AE for the Greater Portland Board, who braved the rain, sat ON their dry YPOM tee shirts (a very welcome use!), and cheered on our contest winners!
A NIGHT OF WINNERS ... well, except the Sea Dogs ... (they lost 7-4) .... and except my husband ... (who lost a beer when the uber-enthusiastic Sea Dogs mascot Slugger ran by - accidentally hitting his "beer arm".)
MAR looks forward to what the members might do in the future with video to help people get their own piece of Maine ....
Here's a link to see the list of winning videos: Click here.
Grand Prize is Brett Slater (first video); Second Prize is Lorraine Aromando (second video); Third Prizes are in random order (but names as their videos appear on the playlist) - Aaron Megquier, Jon Wadick, Oakley Dyer, Tim Gagnon, Tim Hart, Kristy Ferran, Mike LeVecchia, Holly Austin; and REALTOR winner - Callie Pecunies (last video).
To watch by viewer: (note: We can't figure out why the Grain Surfboards video isn't working on the viewer playlist below)
