Bend REALTOR® Wins 2019 Distinguished Service Award

I would like to take this opportunity to report on an exceptional individual in our real estate community, who, with full disclosure, happens to be my brother.

Lester Friedman, Broker with Coldwell Banker Bain, was recently awarded the Distinguished Service Award by the Oregon Association of REALTORS®, along with fellow REALTOR® Don Livingood of Medford. The award has been presented to just 30 REALTORS® since 1993, and since that time only four Central Oregon recipients have been chosen. Lester joins local REALTORS® Everett Turner, Mike Kozak and Michael Hoover in that prestigious DSA club.

The OAR Distinguished Service Award (DSA) was established in 1993 to recognize outstanding service and contributions to the Association over a period of at least 10 years. Criteria for the award includes service in areas such as committee membership, committee leadership, and service as a state director, officer or National Association of REALTORS® director. Lester is a member of the Central Oregon Association of REALTORS® and has been active in residential and commercial transactions and education for over 20 years. In 2012, Lester was also awarded the Central Oregon Association of REALTORS® REALTOR® of the Year (ROTY) award. The Local ROTY program is designed to recognize a REALTOR® member of each Local Association/Board in Oregon who has provided outstanding service to the REALTOR® organizations (local, state and national), their profession, and their community primarily during the previous 18 months. According to the DSA selection criteria, no recipient of the ROTY award may be eligible for the Distinguished Service Award until five years have elapsed from their ROTY award. Lester is very well respected by his peers, and provides unparalleled access to his wealth of knowledge about all things real estate related.

Lester has also been active at the state and national levels for real estate since being licensed in 1999. He has been a voice for real estate on the Political Affairs Committee, ROTY Committee and Professional Development Committee. For more than ten years, he has served as a State Director. Lester is very active in the local community as well, serving on the Central Oregon Community College Budget Committee, the Bend Chief’s Citizen’s Advisory Committee and has been a Mt. Bachelor Mountain Ambassador for many years, assisting guests with a top notch experience while visiting the mountain to ski or snowboard. Lester was selected as the recipient of the 2019 OAR Distinguished Service Award by the REALTOR® of the Year Committee, based on his outstanding legacy of work in his local, state, and national REALTOR® communities. Congratulations, Lester and thanks for all you do in the community and our profession!

Howard Friedman, CCIM, is a Partner and Managing Principal Broker at Compass Commercial. He joined the firm in 1999.