Thompson
HUNTINGTON –- House Speaker Rick Thompson has been honored by the West Virginia Association of Realtors for his dedication to public service and the realtor community.
At an association gathering at Pullman Square in Huntington recently, Thompson was presented with the Donald E. Hardman Award for Government and Public Affairs.
"I am very grateful for this honor," said Thompson, who is a Wayne County attorney. "The realty industry is an extremely important part of West Virginia's economy – through not only home sales but the promotion of our communities. I am pleased that the people working so hard every day to move that industry forward believe I am representing their needs well."
According to the Association, Hardman was a pillar of the West Virginia Association of Realtors for many years, and his passion for working to promote Realtor issues in the West Virginia Legislature was widely known and admired. In his honor, the Don Hardman award is given each year by the WVAR to an individual "who goes above and beyond the call of duty to promote, protect and advance the Realtor Community in the West Virginia Legislature."
The purpose of the West Virginia Association of Realtors is to serve and represent its members in regulatory and legislative matters; to keep the Realtors central to the real estate transaction; to promote member integrity, competency and responsible citizenship, and to advocate and protect private property rights and equal housing opportunity. Their goal is the promotion of regulatory and legislative action favorable to member's business successes, and members do that by working closely with the West Virginia Real Estate Commission on the law and rules that impact the real estate industry.