Builders of the Board in the 1980s

The strong tradition of leadership brought to the Board was continued into the 1980s and 1990s. The builders of the Board who provided leadership in the 1980s and 1990s include Del Sveinsson, Ron Esch, Harvey Galbraith, Pat Rudiger, and Pat Mooney.

Del has been a REALTOR since 1976. He is a partner and Agent for NRS Haida Realty Ltd. Leduc; actively involved in residential, acreage and commercial sales. Del is a top producer for the industry and a committed volunteer who serves his profession and community. After serving on various committees of the EREB starting in 1980, Del was president in 1983. He has gone on to make contributions to AREA serving as chairman of the Education and Conference Committees and as vice-president in 1989. From 1990 to 1994 he was chairman of the Alberta Real Estate Insurance Exchange Advisory Board. He has been awarded Life Memberships in the EREB and AREA.

Ron Esch was president of the Board in 1982. In January 1984 he joined the Board as the manager of its Administrative Services Department after having had a very successful career with the firm started by his father. He remained with the Board until 1987 when he became the executive vice-president of the Calgary Real Estate Board.

Harvey Galbraith has played a role in all aspects of the industry. He has been a sales representative, sales and general manager, partner and sole owner, agent and franchise¬-owner. He is currently president of HomeLife Hargal Realty. His contributions to organized real estate have included serving on various committees and as president of the Board in 1992. During his term he was involved in the research to acquire a new database that would ultimately become the Stellar system. He was also involved in the selection process to replace retiring Executive Vice-President Art Jones. (After an extensive nationwide search, Ron Hutchinson was promoted from the position of Membership Services Manager.) Harvey has also served as a director with AREA. He was REALTOR of the Year in 1994 and received a Life Membership from the EREB in 1995.

In 1979, Pat Rudiger began his real estate career as a licensed salesman for Royal LePage. In 1981 he acquired the RE/MAX franchise in Leduc. In 1986 he was elected vice-president of RE/MAX Edmonton and became Agent/Manager for Edmonton in 1988. After serving on various committees from 1989 on, Pat became president of the EREB in 1993.

Events during Pat's term included implementing the Plain Language Offer to Purchase Contract for residential properties and the Offer to Purchase and Lease Agreement for the Industrial, Commercial and Investment Division. (The development of new forms and their revisions has been a major activity of the Board since the formation of the Edmonton Real Estate Association in 1927.)

Another important builder of the Board is Pat Mooney, who began his career with H. R. Kellough Realty Ltd. in 1962. Upon the death of Homer Kellough in 1971, he was part of the group who purchased the company and continued to operate it under the same name. Following the sale of the company to Block Brothers in 1981, he remained with them until 1987. His contributions to organized real estate began in 1982 when he became a director. He was president of the EREB in 1987, a director and president of AREA, and a director of CREA. He was named REALTOR of the Year for 1990, which acknowledges his industry involvement as well as his community activities. He has received Life Memberships from EREB and AREA.

Recent contributors to the operations of the Board include Mary McLean, Sherry Belcourt-Darby, and Heather Gates.

Mary McLean started in the industry in 1974 with the Calgary firm of Toole and Cote. She later worked for H. R. Kellough Realty and Block Brothers. She served as a director for six years and on a number of committees, with Public Relations being the most important to her. During her term this committee organized traditional activities such as the MLS® Golf

This article is extracted from John Gilpin, Responsible Enterprise: A History of Edmonton Real Estate & the Edmonton Real Estate Board. (Edmonton: Edmonton Real Estate Board, 1997). The Heritage Community Foundation and the Alberta Real Estate Foundation would like to thank John Gilpin and the REALTORS® Association of Edmonton for permission to reproduce this material.