By Laurie MacDonald
I am so appreciative of this year’s “Salute to Service” theme. I have many reasons why I’m an active volunteer with PSAR, and why you should be one too.
By volunteering at PSAR, I have learned new skills, developed new friendships and expanded my network. When you volunteer with PSAR, you are contributing to our real estate industry.
Volunteering means you will have a seat at the table. Our industry is going through many changes. The role our Association plays in our industry becomes even more critical.
Volunteering also means that my voice will be heard in helping to help to grow the Association. Volunteering gives me the opportunity to advocate for issues and concerns that I believe are right and are consistent with PSAR’s mission to empower REALTORS®. I always want to bring value to my clients and being in front and on top of the issues affecting our industry allows me to do that.
I enjoy volunteering with PSAR because I’m a helper at heart. I enjoy serving and I think we were created to serve others, not just ourselves. We all have crazy schedules as real estate professionals and it can be hard to find the time to volunteer. But I enjoy supporting others. And bringing out all their potential really brings out the best in me, too.
We all want to make the world a better place. To me, the secret to living is giving. Life is all about creating meaning, and meaning never comes from what you get, it comes from what you give. Mark Twain said: “The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why.”
Volunteering also provides me a sense of purpose and fulfillment. Volunteering gives more happiness and good health.
I am a very social being. In life, the greatest highs and lows involve the highs and lows of relationships. Life is all about relationships. Life is not about achievements. It’s not about accomplishments. Rather, life is about relationships and a series of memories and experiences you have along the way.
I hope you decide today to become more involved with PSAR. Don’t wait another day to join me and show a greater level of support for our Association and our industry. All of us at PSAR are here to cheer for you. You can do more than you think you can. It starts with you giving back by joining a committee, volunteering at an event and looking for opportunities to serve. Thanks in advance for your greater involvement and participation.
* * *
Laurie MacDonald, a fourth-generation San Diegan, has worked in real estate since September 2015. She grew up in La Mesa and graduated from Helix High School. Laurie traveled to 28 countries before turning 30 years of age. Her great-grandmother, born in 1906, bought a home by herself in Normal Heights in 1939, a rarity at that time for a female without the assistance of a man. Her grandparents operated a real estate office, called Kelly and Associates, for many years on Parkway Drive in La Mesa. Laurie is an original member of La Mesa Conversations, a civic-minded committee founded in 2015. She also has served on the board of the La Mesa Village Merchants Association. She is currently a member of the La Mesa Park & Recreation Foundation. She previously served on PSAR’s Government Affairs Committee and traveled to Sacramento for “Legislative Day.” She served as chair of PSAR’s YPN group in 2017 and 2018. Laurie was named East County Realtor of the Year at the PSAR Officers and Directors Installation Dinner held in 2018. She served as chair of PSAR’s Charity Committee in 2019. She was recently elected to serve on the PSAR board of directors in 2020.