01/04/2024
Hey! Want to get to know me better?
I grew up in Jamaica and left for Canada to live with my father and his family in June of 1990.
Truth be told, I never wanted to come. I was 17 and was enjoying life as a budding barber. I was busy making money and I loved making people look and feel fresh as they would say.
My impression of Cambridge (where I arrived) was fascinating. I could smell so many fragrances of pollens on the trees and they smelled sweet. I never slept that night. I just stared out the window.
Within the first week though, I quickly realized that life as I knew it was no more. I started in September at Galt Collegiate Institute by the recommendation of Immigration.
I already had my high school diploma but for it to be recognized, they wanted me to take History, Geography and overall learn more about Canada. They even offered me a translator :) OMG!.
Those subjects turned out to be a blessing in many later conversations.
My father could not wait for me to get a job. I applied everywhere. Not even McDonald’s would hire me. I finally got a job working with a friend cleaning offices after school.
By the time I was almost 19, I was told to pack my bag. I could no longer live at my father’s house. I did not get it so I asked where we were going and then his tone changed. For the first time in life I felt rejection.
Now, this was the start of my realization. The importance of a roof over my head that no one could dictate. I had aspirations to be a lawyer. However, my immediate needs were food, clothes and shelter so I entered the workforce.
My first job lasted 3 months. I was coughing blood & blowing black from my nose. I took another job where I quickly became a lead hand for a brake manufacturer. From there, I went to work for one of the area's largest automotive plants.
By this point, I had met and married the mother of my two oldest children who happened to be a Realtor. Her father was also a Realtor. I had 2 young daughters by 2000. Real Estate became a regular topic at the dinner table and at work.
See, my father-in-law worked at Budd Canada. The people who knew him kept those conversations going with me. I guess it created a spark.
After 6 years of shift work, continuous metal banging, ear ringing, bald spots from hot weld pellets to my scalp from welding and not being able to have regular dinners with my daughters, I wanted change!
Real Estate became my attention so I completed the required courses and started part-time by the end of 2003.
I loved it. It brought back the satisfaction of barbering. See, seeing people happy and pleased with something I have done gives me great pleasure.
Being part-time, I began doing open houses for my then-wife at Eastforest Homes at the Cobblestone Community in Paris on the weekends and after work, Mon-Wed 4-8 pm.
I quit my full-time job on Sept 25 2008 in the midst of a recession and set my undivided focus on mastering the art and science of selling homes at the best prices.
Those were challenging times but I managed to adjust well. The grit and determination I had developed early on in life helped me push through the recession.
Eventually my enthusiasm was noticed and it wasn’t before long, I was nominated and elected to sit on the Board of Directors of the Cambridge Association of Realtors.
I served for a three years until I became President in 2018. With a few changes from circumstance within, I ended up serving a second consecutive term as President.
Over the years, I have met and cultivated so many relationships across our Country with my fellow Realtors, I am so thankful!
After years of performance awards and accolades, nothing gives me more joy than transferring those skills to my clients so they can fulfill their Real Estate endeavors.
I thank them all for keeping the light and passion flowing.
Today, I’m grateful to be helping families in the Waterloo Region seamlessly settle in the right areas of town.
