Barbara Pearce Receives “Women of FIRE” Award

North Haven (August 2011) – H. Pearce Real Estate Company is pleased to announce that President and CEO Barbara L. Pearce will be receiving the "Women of FIRE” award from The Commercial Record. "I am both pleased and humbled to be receiving this award,” said Barbara Pearce. “Not only is it great to be recognized for my work, but it is also inspiring to be honored alongside the other ‘Women of FIRE.’ I’m in excellent company."

With the Women of FIRE awards, The Commercial Record recognizes incredibly successful women in the finance, real estate, and insurance sectors of Connecticut. More than 100 women were nominated this year and only 10 winners were chosen. Barbara Pearce was commended for her dedication to community service, diligent pursuit of professional and personal growth, and her remarkable achievements.

Pearce and her fellow award recipients will have their stories published in a special section of The Commercial Record magazine in September. On Wednesday, September 28, she will receive her award at a Women of FIRE awards luncheon at the Hartford Club. Dr. Pamela Trotman Reid, President of St. Joseph’s College, will be giving the keynote speech.

Barbara Pearce can be contacted at 203.281.3400, ext. 304 or by email: blp@hpearce.com. To learn more about H. Pearce Company, Realtors, go to www.hpearce.com.

H. Pearce Regional Offices Hold a Book Drive for New Haven Reads in Memory of Christine Alexander

New Haven (August 2011) – Barbara L. Pearce, President and CEO of H. Pearce Company REALTORS®, is pleased to announce that H. Pearce’s regional offices recently held a book drive in memory of Christine Alexander, the late founder and Co-Executive Director of New Haven Reads. “What was remarkable about Christine was her ability to transform her zeal for helping others into a multitude of valuable programs that truly served the New Haven community,” says Barbara Pearce. “We are grateful to be able to contribute to her cause in any way we can.”

During the month of July, books were collected from the Branford, New Haven and Wallingford regional offices, as well as from the Whitney Grove mailroom. In total, close to 30 boxes and bags brimming with books were collected at the sites. People also signed up to volunteer at New Haven Reads. Anita Kamalanathan (New Haven regional office) shares a touching story of a donation: “One of the calls we received was from a teacher, Ms. Liz Lazar, who dropped off at least 7 bags full of children’s books at the Branford office. Ms. Lazar mentioned that her late husband had also worked with Herb Pearce [H. Pearce’s late founder] at the A. C. Gilbert Co.”

In 2003, Christine Alexander founded New Haven Reads as a book bank with the mission “to share the joy and power of reading.” The community resource and literacy center has since expanded to four locations and a variety of programs, including tutoring, a book distribution program, ESL courses, literacy camp, and more. Alexander recently passed away after battling breast cancer.

“We were so enthused when we saw the numbers of books brought in! [H. Pearce] held a wonderfully successful book drive,” says Kirsten Levinsohn, Co-Executive Director of New Haven Reads. “It is extraordinary how the community has come together to pay tribute to Chris. She has clearly touched a lot of peoples’ lives.”

Levinsohn says that New Haven Reads is delighted to accept all kinds of books. She adds that children’s books are especially welcome because hundreds of teachers pick up books for the upcoming school year. She stresses that the center is always looking for volunteers, especially for one-on-one tutoring as there are always students seeking after-school tutoring.

To make a donation to New Haven Reads or to volunteer, go to their website, www.newhavenreads.org, or contact them at 203.752.1923.

Congressman Barney Frank Speaks at H. Pearce Quarterly Meeting

North Haven (August 2011) – President and CEO of the H. Pearce Real Estate Company, Barbara L. Pearce, would like to thank Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro for inviting Congressman Barney Frank to speak to Realtors and financial professionals at the University of New Haven on Thursday, June 30th. The U.S. Representative for Massachusetts’ Fourth District, and co-author of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, addressed a packed room.

The meeting began with a speech from Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro, U.S. Representative for Connecticut’s Third District. DeLauro had previously been the keynote speaker at H. Pearce Company’s annual meeting in April. She explained how a conversation between herself and Barbara Pearce led to the invitation of Barney Frank to the meeting, as employees of the company were unsure of what the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act entailed. The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act was a 2,000 page law, signed into effect July 2010, aiming to regulate financial agencies nationwide.

Congressman Joe Courtney, U.S. Representative for Connecticut’s Second District, also spoke. Courtney spoke in favor of the bill, citing the need for economic transparency in order for the market to stay stable.

Frank described the economic climate that led to his proposal of the bill in 2009, mentioning how American society’s innovation got too far ahead of the framework of rules initially implemented by the public sector. According to Frank, the rules never adapted over the past 30 years as the private sector vastly grew. This was specifically highlighted by the banking industry’s newfound competition with non-regulated entities that allowed greater loan requests.
From January 2007 to January 2011, Frank chaired the House Financial Services Committee and his high ranking enabled him to gain support for the bill. Frank said the legislation could have actually used $2 billion in federal funding to help those in danger of foreclosing. However, he feels partisan politics prevented the bill from reaching its full potential, so the proposal was cut in half to $1 billion.

After Frank completed his assessment of the bill, he led a question and answer session with the conference’s attendees. Concerns ranged from the S.A.F.E. Mortgaging License Act of 2008 to the possibility of subsidization for Realtors. Frank said the House has defeated all efforts to provide subsidies, but added that it is an issue he will continue to push in Congress, along with housing consolidation concerns.

To close the meeting, Pearce thanked all three officials for coming to clarify many questions the Realtors and bankers had involving the future of their industries.