Linda Walker, a Realtor with Badger Peabody & Smith Realty, has been selected as the New Hampshire Association of Realtors 2024 Good Neighbor Award recipient for her volunteer efforts with the Christmas Stocking Project, which she founded with three friends in 1973 and has served for the 51 years since.
The organization is designed to make Christmas special for Mount Washington Valley area families, providing gifts for more than 45 children each year. At 81, Walker currently serves as the organization's chair, and she's still going strong.
"I've had lots of help along the way," she said. "It's so much fun on Christmas morning, when you know all these kids are having a great Christmas. I'll keep doing it as long as I physically can."
The Christmas Stocking Project will receive a $3,000 check in Walker's name, and she will be recognized during the NHAR Realtor of the Year ceremony on Sept. 17 at the Grappone Conference Center in Concord.
"Linda is exactly the sort of person the Good Neighbor award was designed to recognize, honor and support," NHAR President Joanie McIntire said. "It's the kind of volunteerism that sets an example for us all."
Walker's efforts haven't been limited to the Christmas Stocking Project. Among her other volunteer endeavors:
- Board member with Arts Jubilee, a nonprofit which brings world-class, live music performances to the Mount Washington Valley.
- Original member of the Mount Washington Valley Band, which performs in the annual Fourth of July parades.
- Past President of the White Mountain Board of Realtors.
- Board member for Pope Memorial Library in North Conway; greeter for Mt. Top Music; server for Jen's Friends Hill Climb.
- Past member of the Habitat For Humanity Board.
"The Good Neighbor Working Group was blown away by Linda's efforts," McIntire said.
Walker has lived in North Conway for 55 years and has worked with Badger Peabody & Smith for the last 44 of those. She has been married to David "Doc" Wheeler for over 57 years and is the proud mother of three grown children and five grandchildren.
She was selected from a strong Good Neighbor applicant pool that included runners-up Kiera Russell and Kristi Whitten, each of whom has earned $1,000 for their respective organizations: Russell for Holiday Hope New Hampshire and Whitten for Roca Kidz Club.
The NH Association of Realtors Good Neighbors program was introduced in 2003 and serves to annually recognize Realtors who make exceptional contributions to improve the quality of life in their communities through volunteerism.
Each year, one or two winners are selected from applications and recognized by NHAR leadership at the end of the year. Winners receive:
- A portion of the $5,000 award as a donation, in their name, to their community charity
- Coverage in their local media and on NHAR.com
- Registration fee to attend the NHAR annual conference in September
- A prestigious crystal award presented at a time and place of their choice
- of the Good Neighbor Awards logo on their Web site and promotional materials
