Bob Hoffman, a beloved member of our Meridian family for 27 years, passed away on November 19, 2018 at age 89. To honor Bob and his vast contributions to our company and the local commercial real estate community, it is my privilege and distinct honor to announce the creation of the Robert Hanes Hoffman Scholarship for new commercial real estate agents at The Meridian Realty Group.
Bob Hoffman’s commercial real estate career spanned over 50 years and I am fortunate to have worked alongside him for 35 of those years. Bob Hoffman exemplified what a commercial real estate broker needs to do to be successful and he willingly and artfully offered advice to all of our associates- both rookies and experienced brokers alike. We all learned from Bob’s unique understanding of the unpredictable and ever-changing real estate market. Bob believed that the first rule of success was to simply “show up”. Bob didn’t expect young brokers to work six days a week like he did for 50 years but he did suggest to them that success was 100% dependent on effort. The owners of Meridian, Mark Fulk, John Ruffin and Charlie Fulk, feel that the most beneficial way for us to demonstrate what Bob Hoffman’s legacy means to our company is to offer a scholarship in Bob’s name to support our new agents who possess the attributes that Bob admired in a young broker- diligence, honesty, cooperation, humor, fairness and selflessness. There has always been a time lag of 6-12 months before a new agent’s commissions kick in and for that new broker, despite his commitment to the “Hoffman Principles”, he may struggle financially. The Robert Hanes Hoffman scholarship will reward this individual and perhaps allow him or her to stay the course and become successful in this business we all love.
Mark E. Fulk
President
October 5, 2018
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