Daily News

Realtor Assoc. of Pioneer Valley Names Lisa Kraus Affiliate of the Year

SPRINGFIELD — Lisa Kraus, Western Massachusetts vice president and mortgage sales manager at United Bank in West Springfield, has been named 2015 Affiliate of the Year by the Realtor Assoc. of Pioneer Valley. The announcement was made during the association’s annual awards banquet on June 11 at the Log Cabin in Holyoke.

As the highest honor given to an affiliate member, the award is bestowed upon one person who has shown outstanding service and devotion to the organization during the past 17 months in the areas of affiliate-related association activity, community service, and business activity.

A member of the Realtor Assoc. since 1999, Kraus is chairperson of the community service committee and a member of the affiliate-Realtor committee. She is an active participant in the association’s many charitable fund-raising efforts, serving as co- chairperson of the annual benefit golf tournament, and the calendar raffle. She chaired the Minute to Win It charitable fund-raising event. She is involved in shopping, wrapping, and delivering gifts to area homeless shelters as part of the association’s activities during the holidays.

Kraus is a co-presenter of financing classes as part of the “If the Realtor Had Only Known” series and at the annual Education Fair & Expo. She regularly participates in association membership meetings and networking events. Her business activities include hosting a monthly Meeting of the Minds, a gathering of local lenders, attorneys, and appraisers who come together to discuss real-estate market trends and challenges, and craft potential resolutions. She is also a member of the Home Builders & Remodelers Assoc. of Western Massachusetts.