I had the pleasure of meeting friends and family of Realtor Donnie Weddle over the last couple of months. During conversations with many of his friends, past co-workers and peers I learned a great deal about the guy they call the one with ” The Right Stuff.” If you know Don or you get the chance to meet him you will find out soon that he is in awe with what he calls his heroes. He has long been a fan and supporter of the space program. Don learned at a young age that so much of our technology was a direct derivative from the work to put a man on the moon. Over the course of his career,  he has embraced technology in efforts to make his work more streamlined a productive for himself and his employees. He truly believes that you are never too old to stop learning. Don has evolved just as the space program has throughout its history. One of the most notable changes for him was retiring from a career spanning over 27 years working for one of the largest companies in the world and most certainly the number one in size and sales of retail companies in the world. He started on the ground floor so to speak; he strived to learn the nuts and bolts of the business as he moved through the ranks. He finished his career with Walmart in the Store Manager position for the last 8 years in Checotah, Okla. You may not be familiar with the name of this small Eastern Oklahoma town. However, you will surely know a county girl who called it her home town Carrie Underwood. When Don was managing the supercenter, he realized that with set procedures and protocols a step or two more than directed from corporate that his team could deliver more  consistent results. Deliver results they did; his team was able to achieve scores in numerous metrics in profitability to customer experience surveys declaring that his store was their store of choice. He worked diligently to continue learning and sharing that knowledge with others he worked with whether it be a subordinate or a peer around the country. As I said earlier, he retired from what was his passion of helping people find what they needed and wanted to buy, again he was a maverick back when that was something the fast-growing company needed to pioneer projects and systems as the company grew to saturation and embraced marketing and control coming from the top down that it was time for him to lift off into his next orbit of life.

Don’s next orbit was to enjoy what he had worked so hard for over his life, and he did just that with his family and friends over the next year. All the while he was studying things of interest while embracing family, friendship, and faith. The things that interested him was entrepreneurship and how through his 30 plus years in customer service and more than 20 years in management could lead to him starting a company that could prosper allowing him to give back to the community and the people who supported him over the years. He decided to start a journey in the field of real estate. He applied many of the same principals to creating his company that he had learned from Sam Walton and many of Don’s mentors at Walmart. It is somewhat awe-inspiring that when you’re professional life, and personal experiences are so aligned with your beliefs and the beliefs of your heroes. You see his heroes were his mentors, his father, the men and women of the space program and yes his lord and savior Jesus Christ. As he began to establish his company he had numerous paths he could go. He could become an investor, real estate agent, a marketer; he could get into the lending side of real estate. He chose at least for now to grow a company that buys properties, renovates them and then sells them to first time home buyers. He also understands leverage, and that is why he went to real estate school and received his real estate license in the state of Oklahoma. He is currently in the early stages of being licensed in Texas. He selected a company not so much different than the one he dedicated over half of his life to. A company that has received so many accolades with two of the most important being the ones they are most proud of. Keller Williams has been named the number one training company all across all industries, and as Gary Keller is driving the company, they are considered one of the best technology companies in the real estate industry. You see Don knew if chose the right Brokerage to partner with he would learn from them quickly and oh how fast he has learned. His Real Estate Re-development company is poised to renovate over 10 properties this year, and his goal is to sell over a two million dollars at Keller Williams this year.  So that is why they say he has “The Right Stuff” as a compliment to him in honoring the men and women of the space program.  He was just over a year old when Neil Armstrong stepped on the moon.  He said to me things evolve, people retire and so do vessels used for gaining knowledge and bettering mankind.

Don has said many times that if we didn’t have a space program with the goal of putting a man on the moon, we wouldn’t have many of the It is technologies we take for granted today. If you think about it, we might not have Apple or Microsoft. Now that would definitely change our world we live in and how we go about our daily lives.  As I look at what is occurring in the real estate industry, I can only imagine how the space program has impacted how we chase the American dream of homeownership. I’m not saying that without the Apollo missions we wouldn’t be able to purchase what most people say is the largest investment of their lives. However, the processes used would surely be different and more labor intensive not to mention time-consuming.  I actually pulled his profile up on a popular real estate website and found a review that gives you a snapshot of how Donnie Weddle is as a realtor. Even this simple process may not be at our fingertips without the space program.

Client Teresa says the following about Donnie Weddle

“Donnie was very knowledgeable about the whole process of home buying. He made our experience very easy and quick. I would highly recommend him for your buying or selling a home”.

It is clear to me Donnie embraces technology, he honors the legacy of the men and women who made our progress possible through hard work and dedication to a common goal.