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2020 Most Influential Women: Jeanna Callahan

Century 21 Integrity Group

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Ingenuity is Jeanna Callahan’s favorite part of her job.

“What I love about being a Realtor is that I get to be creative to make deals work,” says Callahan, a broker at Century 21 Integrity Group. “Most people think my job is to find them a home or find them a buyer to sell their home when in reality that is maybe 10% of what I provide to my clients. My expertise is in getting them to the closing table.”

A recent example of Callahan’s creativity and persistence in getting the job done involved a listing for sellers who had moved out of state. Callahan found a buyer but faced a significant challenge when the home’s septic system failed inspection. Her efforts to find a solution involved calling nearly 30 septic companies to remedy what turned out to be an intricate fix, multiple conversations with city officials about a sewer hookup and zigzagging between city offices, an unhelpful neighbor denying access to needed property and a long-distance seller diagnosed with COVID-19.

“We were able to make it work and all come together,” Callahan says. “A normally six-month process everyone told me was impossible got done in less than four days.”

She has spent almost a decade in real estate. In 2019, Callahan was the top agent with the highest production within Century 21 Integrity Group brokerage and ranked in the top three statewide for Century 21.

“As a result of my experience and productivity, I was asked to participate in Century 21 International’s pilot program for Masters Level Mastermind Series, which is comprised of about 20 Century 21 agents across the entire country to share best practices, brainstorm new ideas and initiate cutting-edge programs to roll out across the company,” Callahan says.

She has had several roles within the Women’s Council of Realtors and is on the board of directors for the Greater Springfield Board of Realtors. And she’s an avid animal lover who was involved in the successful 2018 effort to overturn a ban on pit bulls in Springfield.

Her desire to aid canines isn’t an occasional effort: Callahan is the founder of the Killuminati Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to saving dogs in Missouri by providing financial assistance for non-routine care. When a single mother couldn’t afford the unexpected medical expense for her son’s service dog, for example, the foundation stepped in so the young child wouldn’t lose the best friend that had helped him do better in school.

“We help with the financial stress of unforeseen situations,” Callahan says. “You can do everything right and still need a little bit of help sometimes.”

She sticks to a straightforward approach to everything she touches.

“The meaning of life to me is leave this place better than when you found it,” she says. “I strive every day to live this statement — from picking up the paper towels overflowing onto the floor in the gas station bathroom to pulling over to catch and help the stray dog get back home unharmed – and paying it forward any way I can.”

And if your child has a lemonade stand, hope Callahan drives by. She stops every time.

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