A tribute to a man and his brand.

This week’s blog is dedicated to a man who really believed in the power and meaning of his brand.

Allan Gantt passed away last week. He was a young man at 64 years old and a very dear friend of my wife, Jodi.

A born leader, he served our country and was awarded a Purple Heart and most impressively, a Bronze Star which is the fourth-highest U.S. Armed Forces award a soldier serving our country can receive. He also proved to be a leader in his chosen profession of real estate where the list of his achievements, accolades and elected offices in the North Orange County Association, California Association and National Association of REALTORS® would take much longer to recite than this blog could hold. One thing Allan firmly believed in was the value, importance and power of the REALTOR® brand and the ‘R’ that identifies a member of their local, state and national association. Allan wore his REALTOR® lapel pin religiously everyday whether he was going to the grocery store, an open house or an industry meeting…and didn’t understand why other people wouldn’t.

Allan believed in what the REALTOR® brand stood for: doing better, doing more, and treating people ethically when they were going through the most complicated and most valued transaction they might ever engage in. He carried that same belief into every aspect of his life. He believed wearing the REALTOR® ‘R’ lapel pin distinguished him and showed peopled just who he was: A man of honor and a professional who subscribed to a Code of Ethics, much like he subscribed to a code of honor in the military.

Allan never lost that sense of honor in dealing with his clients, or advising and mentoring young professionals in the business, or in fighting for homeowner rights when he visited the statehouse or Capitol Hill or how he treated his friends.
Allan always felt it was an honor to serve his country, and an honor to wear the REALTOR® ‘R’ lapel pin. It separated him from ordinary agents and he believed that well beyond the day he left this life.

I didn’t know Allan for as long as a lot of the attendees at the standing room only service I attended this week. I met him several times and he was always friendly, offering a open hand in friendship. I knew he loved his wife, Diane; he loved his profession and the people he interacted with daily. I didn’t know Allan was a hero in so many ways. We, who knew Allan; who he was and what he stood for are better people for our time with him. Everyone who knew him will miss him.

This past Tuesday, Allan Gantt, father, soldier, patriot, husband, mentor, friend and REALTOR®, was laid to rest. He could have chosen to have his Purple Heart and his Bronze Star accompany him into eternity. But Allan chose to have only the REALTOR ‘R’ pinned over his heart. We wanted it that way; he insisted on it.