Fitzgerald, Williams win top Board of Realtors awards

Springfield's Realtor/Broker of the year opened his own real estate company less than a year ago.

The Greater Springfield Board of Realtors named Bob Fitzgerald winner of the award after he was selected by previous winners.

The board also honored Cass Williams as Broker/Salesperson of the Year.

Fitzgerald opened Fitzgerald First Realty, located at 425 S. Union, last July. The company sells and lists residential real estate, as well as buying houses and land and selling lots for development.

"Owning my own company is something I've always wanted to do," Fitzgerald said. "The entrepreneurial spirit kicked in after all these years. There are so many opportunities out there to invest time and money and do well."

Prior to starting his own company, Fitzgerald worked five years for Carol Jones Realtors, where, among other major responsibilities, he created the www.caroljones.com Web site, later adding virtual tours.

Creating a neighborhood'

Fitzgerald said he loves what he does. "I love construction and the smell of lumber being sawed. "It's great to see something go from the bare ground up. I like the hunt finding the right piece of property and then taking a bare piece of land and creating a neighborhood."

Fitzgerald described himself as "kind of numb" after hearing his name announced as Realtor/Broker of the Year. "I was trying to think of what I would say in my acceptance speech, so I didn't hear a lot of what was being said about my background from the podium. Winning this is a thrill. There's only one of these awards given out every year. I'm being recognized by my peers."

He said he knows real estate is the right vocation for him. "I didn't have the opportunity to go to college," he said. "I always wanted to do something with my head and not my hands. I told my wife I was thinking about becoming a real estate agent and then started talking to a broker. I took the test and got started. It has provided a wonderful lifestyle for me and my family. I've never questioned whether or not I should be in real estate."

Fitzgerald currently serves as the second vice president of the Greater Springfield Board of Realtors and as state director of the Missouri Association of Realtors.

Cass Williams has been a Realtor for Jones & Company for the last six years, selling residential and commercial properties as well as land.

Investor

Williams began as an investor in the Kansas City area and entered real estate from there. "I went with Jones & Company because I wanted a mid-size firm," she said. "I felt I would get more of the support and training I would need, I also had a great deal of faith in the company's ethics. They don't tolerate a breach of ethics."

Williams said merely being nominated for Broker/Salesperson of the Year was enough of an honor. "To actually win was a surprise," she said. "There's no higher praise than that which comes from your peers."

Letter

Thomas Barnett, president of Jones and Company, wrote a letter of recommendation on Williams' behalf when she was being nominated. It read:

"If I could say one thing that distinguishes Cass Williams from many other Realtors is that she has more than an intellectual comprehension of Realtor ethics. Cass puts her client first in every respect. Suffice it to say that Cass Williams is an outstanding person. And from that she has become an outstanding Realtor."

Williams, who has also taken technical courses, played a key part in launching the Greater Springfield Board of Realtors' Web site and in selecting the new Rapattoni Web-based Multilist Service system, the database that contains all of the Board of Realtors property listings.

"It's a superior way to market property," she said.