Flushing REALTOR® David Legaz named NYSAR Community Service Award winner

Feb 13, 2018

The New York State Association of REALTORS® honored David Legaz of Flushing with its 2017 Community Service Award in recognition of his dedication to raising funds for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society to help fellow 9/11 first responders. He received the award during the association’s Mid-Winter Business Meetings in Albany, NY.

The NYSAR Community Service Award is intended to recognize REALTORS®’ community involvement supporting initiatives aimed at a community’s youth, improving the quality of education, quality of life for older Americans, homelessness prevention, as well as efforts following natural disasters and other community needs. 

Legaz, a retired New York City Police Department sergeant, spent months at Ground Zero following the 9/11 attacks. Wanting to find a way to help those fellow first responders who had been stricken with blood cancers due to their prolonged exposure, he began running marathons and half-marathons with Team In Training, which raises money for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

Since 2011, he has raised approximately $85,000, while completing more than 20 half-marathons in locations across the country and several New York City Marathons. Team In Training helps provide funding for significant therapies like chemotherapy and bone marrow transplants, which have a significant impact on blood cancer patients.

“This award recognizes REALTORS® who demonstrate an exceptional commitment to making their communities a better place to live, and David exemplifies this commitment,” said Dawn Carpenter, 2017 president of the New York State Association of REALTORS®. “His efforts to support treatment and research to benefit those suffering from leukemia and lymphoma are truly inspirational.”

Along with an inscribed award, a grant of $500 was also made in Legaz’s name to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society.

The New York State Association of REALTORS® is a not-for-profit trade organization representing more than 55,000 of New York state’s real estate professionals. The term REALTOR® is a registered trademark, which identifies real estate professionals who subscribe to a strict code of ethics as members of the National Association of REALTORS®. These REALTORS® are also members of the New York State Association of REALTORS® as well as their local board or association of REALTORS®.


About Long Island Board of REALTORS®

Long Island Board of REALTORS®, Inc. (LIBOR) is a not-for-profit trade association and the fourth-largest local REALTOR® board in the United States, with approximately 30,000 members. Since 1910, LIBOR has served real estate professionals in Queens, Nassau, and Suffolk counties seeking career advancement, community engagement, homeownership advocacy, and unwavering professional standards.

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