Cd’A Realtors focus on safety for September

Even in areas with low crime rates, Realtors and other real estate professionals should take precautions to avoid potentially dangerous situations.

With September designated as Realtor Safety Awareness Month, the Coeur d’Alene Association of Realtors will host a safety forum on Sept. 23 that will focus on ways to stay safe while working with clients and the public.

Jessica Eastin, membership and education director for the Coeur d’Alene Association of Realtors, feels a connection to promoting workplace safety for the area’s real estate professionals.

“I started working for the Association when I was 18 … I grew up in this industry, and so I take the safety of our agents personally,” Eastin said. “Just because you live in a ‘safe’ area doesn’t mean anything can happen at any time.”

Carl Carter, Jr. will be the featured speaker at the Sept. 23 event. Carter is a Realtor and founder of the Beverly Carter Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving safety for all real estate professionals. Carter often speaks about his mother, Beverly Carter, an Arkansas Realtor who was kidnapped and killed while on the job.

Dianna Haug, a Realtor and the education committee chairperson for the Coeur d’Alene Association of Realtors, recalls the impact of when Carl Carter spoke to members of the Association back in 2018.

“It was definitely very impactful - there was just a silence over the crowd and many, teary eyes,” Haug said.

With membership growing over the past few years, the education committee decided to bring Carter back based on overwhelmingly positive feedback.

“I know at this point some of our members have heard his story, but he is going to incorporate some other events that have happened to agents between the time he spoke last and now,” Eastin said.

The event this year will also include a law enforcement panel featuring representatives from the Coeur d’Alene Police Department, Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office and more about potential warning signs and understanding your environment. Another presentation will focus on best practices for office safety.

“We go into houses with people they don’t know sometimes, and in our area you’ve got places where we show vacant land with no service,” Haug said. “(The program) will focus on things to look for and having a plan for safety in those situations.”

Eastin said the entire event carries the theme of “what has happened, what is happening now and how you can prevent anything from happening in the future.”

The event is a collaboration between the Coeur d’Alene Association of Realtors and the Women’s Council of Realtors North Idaho. Members of either organization can register for the event for $30. Non-member registration is $50.

The event will be held 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sept. 23 at the Best Western Plus Coeur d’Alene Inn at 506 W. Appleway Ave. Get more information and register for the event by clicking on the link on the events calendar at CdARealtors.com. You can also visit BeverlyCarterFoundation.com for more information on the nonprofit.

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