& Nancy
Growing up in Ottawa and living in the downtown core of the city until leaving home when I was married, gave me an eye into life in the city. I remember spending hours at the local library and bringing home stacks of books to read. After graduating from High School, I worked for the Federal Government in the Treasury Branch, which, even though it was quite boring, taught me about the value of systems and processes, and the importance of attention to detail and keeping deadlines.
Our summers were spent at our cottage just outside of Ottawa, in a place called Constance Bay, and I spent one summer supervising the robust swimming program at “The Bay”, being responsible for some 200 children and their swimming instructors! Such good times and so many wonderful memories. We swam, boated, and fished ... summers went by way to fast, and truth be told, we didn't realize just how lucky we were to have a cottage on the Ottawa River.
As life took me from marrying the love of my life, Barry, to moving to Calgary together as a young couple (my husband went to the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology there and graduated as an HVAC technologist), and through all the peaks and valleys of raising a young family - I eventually ended up working for the owner of a 1,000 person real estate Brokerage in the Markham area, just north of Toronto.
Always one to look for a new challenge, while I was successfully selling real estate, I decided to buy a small café and donut shop on the Main Street of Markham. It was tired and needed some love, but I'll tell you ... this was the place where all the movers and shakers in the community came to share coffee, stories and political discussions with each other.
When we decided to move back to our hometown of Ottawa, I basically started from scratch. No one knew me as 'a realtor', and yet, I came with a great deal of experience, passion, and a work ethic, that is becoming more and more rare these days.
In 2003, I was awarded a franchise for a Keller Williams Realty office, which is when my sister, Nancy, joined me, and we became one of the brokerage’s best-producing teams - when teams were not very common in real estate. I couldn't imagine a better business partner than Nancy. There’s nothing more comforting than knowing that the person you are in business with is not only someone you’ve known all your life, but someone who shares your values and goals, and whom you can trust - no matter what.
I was born in Ottawa at The Salvation Army Grace Hospital ... and I didn’t meet my father until I was 3 years old, as he was overseas, serving in the Second World War.
Our parents had known each other since their mid-teens, and their love and respect for each other was very obvious to all of us. Our family home was on MacLaren St., in Centertown, steps away from Percy St. Elementary School, and we loved skating at, then known as, Gladstone Park & Percy St. School. The rinks were in walking distance, and it's there, where one evening, I met my future husband!
Growing up, we were most fortunate to have two sets of grandparents living close-by. One of my Grandfathers was a surveyor for the Government which meant he had to travel to many remote areas in Canada for his work. He must have met a lot of very interesting people. In fact, I remember, one year, he was given the honour of being appointed an ‘Honourary Chief’ for a certain indigenous group, and was invited to the Opening of Parliament, dressed with a tuxedo and Top Hat. We were in such 'awe'!
Married at a young age, my husband was in the Military, stationed at various bases, which makes for an interesting life, and has given me many rich life experiences on which to draw. We even lived in Flin Flon for a couple of years, as well as in, Quebec, Chicago and Denver. We eventually settled down in Barrhaven, a suburb of Ottawa, with a population of - at that time - 20,000 residents! Can you imagine?
People sometimes ask, "Nancy! When are you going to retire?" to which I usually respond with, "Why would I?" People retire from careers; but you never retire from a calling. I love what I get to do and I'm not stopping anytime soon!
When one of our agents' spouse was diagnosed with prostate cancer we decided to host a gala evening to raise funds in support of that family! The turnout was phenomenal and it felt so good to be able to contribute to this meaningful cause. We have since been able to host this event 3 times and have raised over $50,000 for prostate cancer research.
Every year in May we support various charitable groups in need of volunteers, and many of our agents join us that day as we give back to the communities we serve. Throughout the year, we make meals or provide other support for those in our Brokerage who have an illness or bereavement, whether it is just providing some home-cooked meals or other support our agent needs.
5 years ago, we started a new initiative at our brokerage. At Thanksgiving, we raise funds and purchase frozen turkeys and meals for the less fortunate in our city, served by the Ottawa Mission. We believe that kindness, and sharing what we've been blessed with is important. Even though no one person can help everybody - everyone can do something to help somebody... and that does make a difference.
Would you have guessed what these are? Here, Nancy is handing over 3 crocheted milk bag mats to the organizer who will be delivering them to a ‘tent city’ in Gatineau. Most of these milk bag mats are sent to Third World Countries as temporary mattresses in medical facilities. It makes one want to 'crochet' all day to 'get more mats out there'...
"We are so thankful we had your help through this whole process. Thank you so much for all you have done! We are so thankful we had your help through this whole process. Thank you so much for all you have done!"
~Teresa & Peter Slack
"Wendy and Nancy do make an awesome team. They have been in the business a long time, know the real estate market really well and worked diligently on our behalf. Nancy you were a great supporter and believer in our decision to sell and I'm still amazed at how quickly we sold our home."
~Elizabeth Sweenie
"Wendy and Nancy were extremely helpful and great to work with. They made finding accommodation seamless. I highly recommend these ladies as I couldn't have found a place without them!"
~Sophia Esmail
"Wendy and Nancy are awesome to work with in selling my house in a very difficult market and find me a beautiful townhouse. Wendy and Nancy were always available to help me out and point me to the right direction, by giving me valuable advice. I’m thankful to have found those 2 ladies who help me out in the most difficult times in my life. I would recommend Nancy and Wendy without hesitation. Again, thank so much, Wendy and Nancy."
~Manon Deschenes
"Our good friends recommended Wendy and Nancy of Keller Williams Integrity Realty, after they were successful in selling our friends’ home. Our initial meeting with both ladies impressed us immensely. Both ladies are very professional and made some excellent suggestions on staging our home. We were kept informed of all showings and provided with both positive and negative feedback from visitors to our home. We will surely call on these ladies if we ever need to sell our new home. We highly recommend them!"
~June & Denis
"I personally have known Nancy since the mid 1980's. We at one point were co-workers and developed a wonderful friendship. I have always admired her for her sense of commitment to anything, everything & everyone. She is a very hardworking, energetic & a woman of great integrity, always! I am very proud to refer to her as my very dear and trusted friend for ever! Wendy, I have known for a bit less time but have observed her to have the very same qualities as Nancy."
~Susie Cameron
"Once again, we were very pleased and fortunate to work with the Wendy and Nancy Team, this time as they assisted us in the sale of our home. Despite a changing and slowing housing market, Wendy and Nancy skillfully led us through the process of preparing our home and succeeded in selling it for us in short order. They accompanied us closely through the entire experience and were always available to answer our questions and provide professional and knowledgeable advice. Our buying experience with them has been equally positive, so we highly recommend them as an ideal real estate team. We will be always thankful to Wendy and Nancy for their friendly and expert advice."
~Gerald & Joyce Pratt
"The Wendy & Nancy Team were awesome to work with in selling our home and purchasing our condo high rise apartment. These 2 ladies know the market, know how to price the listing and were great in negotiating a very good price on both deals. Their professionalism was top notch and always kept us informed on what was happening, which is extremely important to me. They were excellent in knowing when we wanted the house shown as I was at home recuperating from surgery and I always wanted to be out of the house so they buyers could take their time. We worked with mostly Wendy through these deals but when Nancy was needed she was there too. I would recommend Wendy and Nancy without hesitation. Thank you Wendy and Nancy."
~Jerome Pulcine
"I'm a long-time renter who started looking for a house of my own just as the housing prices in Ottawa skyrocketed. Nancy helped me through the (many) ups and downs as I looked at house after house and lost bid after bid, and then had two deals fall through on inspection. She always answered any questions I had, and never once got impatient or made me feel like I should give up on my home ownership dream throughout my two-year house-hunting saga. When things got complicated with my last offer, both went above and beyond to help make the deal go through (really, they were incredible) and I finally got the perfect-for-me house that I had been looking for. Thank you both so much for helping me find a great place for me and my kids!"
~N. Thompson
"Compliments and thanks to Wendy and her team who recently negotiated a short-term rental lease for us. Wendy made an unfamiliar process feel seamless and quickly got our home rented to great tenants. She was communicative and attentive throughout the process. We would recommend Wendy to anyone!"
~Adam
"Wendy and Nancy were fantastic partners in selling our house and buying our “forever house”. It’s amazing how much more there is to selling your house than just the purchase and sale. I don’t know how people do it without a great team like this behind them."
~JP Chevrier
"Wendy and Nancy were most helpful and accommodating to our schedules when both selling our home and purchasing our condo. We were kept informed on what our market was doing to ensure we got the best for both properties. I would certainly recommend them for your new home search and/or sale."
~Catherine Pulcine
"Nancy sold our house 21 years ago and remembered every detail of the sale after not contacting her since then until two weeks ago. Great realtor then. Amazing recall now. Highly recommend!"
~Doug Powell
"Thank you Wendy and Nancy for your help - made the process so easy!"
~Stephanie Alexandre
"Thank you so much for the gift, that’s so sweet. And thank you for everything you’ve done! You’ve made the buying process very seamless for us."
~Alison & James
Wendy and Nancy are a terrific team. They know their market inside out, give excellent advise, are very proactive and always available. I highly recommend them and use them again for my real estate needs.
~Andrea Morrison
"Compliments and thanks to Wendy and her team who recently negotiated a short-term rental lease for us. Wendy made an unfamiliar process feel seamless and quickly got our home rented to great tenants. She was communicative and attentive throughout the process. We would recommend Wendy to anyone!"
~Adam
"Wendy and Nancy were fantastic partners in selling our house and buying our “forever house”. It’s amazing how much more there is to selling your house than just the purchase and sale. I don’t know how people do it without a great team like this behind them."
~JP Chevrier
"Wendy and Nancy were most helpful and accommodating to our schedules when both selling our home and purchasing our condo. We were kept informed on what our market was doing to ensure we got the best for both properties. I would certainly recommend them for your new home search and/or sale."
~Catherine Pulcine
"Nancy sold our house 21 years ago and remembered every detail of the sale after not contacting her since then until two weeks ago. Great realtor then. Amazing recall now. Highly recommend!"
~Doug Powell
"Thank you Wendy and Nancy for your help - made the process so easy!"
~Stephanie Alexandre
"Thank you so much for the gift, that’s so sweet. And thank you for everything you’ve done! You’ve made the buying process very seamless for us."
~Alison & James
Wendy and Nancy are a terrific team. They know their market inside out, give excellent advise, are very proactive and always available. I highly recommend them and use them again for my real estate needs.
~Andrea Morrison
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