Sandra Schwab

Sandra Schwab joins the Lincolnshire office. She was born in Lincoln, Nebraska and spent her early childhood in California. She graduated from Union College, Lincoln, Nebraska with an Education degree. She became an elementary teacher, teaching grades 1-8. She also has a degree in music with emphasis in piano. She earned a Masters in Business Administration from the University of Phoenix. She received her realtors license in Tennessee, also in Colorado and now in Nebraska. She has 2 grown children. She enjoys traveling, cooking and playing the piano. She recently returned to Nebraska to be close to a new grandchild and family. Sandra can be reached at 970-396-4502 or Sandra.Schwab@woodsbros.com.

What this means is you are seeing bigger patios, fire pits, water features and durable outdoor furniture. This allows people to enjoy their landscaping, expand their home’s usable space and feel like they are getting away from it all without having to leave home.

Patio furniture is reflecting this trend. Traditional patio furniture includes a table with chairs and maybe an umbrella. You are now increasingly seeing a loveseat and several chairs or a sectional surrounding a coffee table or fire pit.

Water features of all kinds are popular – everything from patio fountains to bubbling rocks to waterfalls and ponds. Have you ever just sat and listened to a water feature. It gives you the feeling you are next to a babbling brook at a favorite vacation destination.

You’ll see a trend this summer toward embellishing your outdoor spaces much the same was as you do your indoor spaces. This is accomplished by using indoor/outdoor area rugs, throw pillows and cushions made with weather-suitable fabric. All-weather artwork and accessories like lanterns, candleholders and sculptures also are popular.

Battery-operated candles and umbrella lights will add ambient light after the sun sets and are of less fire risk than traditional candles, firepots or tiki torches.

Indoor/outdoor area rugs add color, texture and pattern to a deck or patio. Remember, though, if they get wet they must be hung out to dry to prevent mold growth underneath them. Outdoor pillows that continually get wet and dried should be made from quick-drying anti-microbial fabric.

The best options for outdoor furniture and accessories are those that mix style with durability to stay in good condition during weather extremes. The options include heavy-duty plastic furniture like Adirondack chairs and tables, all-weather wicker furniture or a number of styles of loungers.

Julia Peterson

Julia Peterson joins the Country Club office. She has lived in Lincoln since 2009. She is married to Tyler (Boomer) Peterson and they have one daughter. Her hobbies include cooking, walking and spending time with family. Julia can be reached at 402-904-0984 or Julia.Peterson@woodsbros.com.

CEO Gene Brake presents Rita Dinger with the Shining Star Award.

Her nomination read:

“One year ago on March 20th, I about died from Spinal Meningitis. While on my death bed literally I had my sister phone Rita Dinger. I don’t even remember this conversation, but Rita told me about it just today, March 14th. My sister had told her that I was in the ER and that I wanted to speak to her. I said to her, “Rita, would you watch over my business for me?”  Without a question, she said, “YES!”  RITA is a shining star every day, but at that moment in time she went above and beyond what is expected, and she did it with so much love and compassion.

I will always view Rita Dinger as a shining star. From the bottom of my heart to yours Rita, THANK YOU so much for all of your assistance, time, love, and friendship. We at Lincolnshire and Woods Bros as a whole have so many Shining Stars, it makes me happy to be associated with! Good work, Woods Bros, and again thank you, Rita Dinger, a very deserving recipient of this award!”

Shining Stars are HomeServices of Nebraska associates, including managers, employees and agents, who help make our company a better place for our customers, clients and for each other. Nominees must exemplify the following:

1. The person went out of their way to exceed the HomeServices of Nebraska Standards and best practices.
2. The gesture or service was above and beyond normal job requirements or expectations.
3. The employee, manager or agent went beyond the call of duty to ensure the needs of a customer, fellow employee or agent.

Anyone is invited to nominate employees, agents or managers who have displayed The Shining Star Spirit. For someone to be recognized, a Shining Star Nomination Form must be submitted by the 15th of every month. *A participant is eligible to win one (1) time per year.

Shining Star Values

Positive Attitude – A positive attitude is focusing on what is useful, beneficial and worthwhile in each and every situation. Your attitude is displayed through your words, actions and facial expressions with your customers and those around you.

Accountable - Accountable is being responsible for your actions and behaviors as they impact customers and those around you.

Responsive – Being responsive is being open to the situation as it occurs and responding in a sensitive manner to meet needs and expectations.

Teamwork – Teamwork is helping each other win and taking pride in each other’s victories. No one person or department alone can provide for the comprehensive needs of our customers. We achieve our goals when working together as a team.

No Excuses – A culture of no excuses acknowledges when mistakes or perceived shortcomings are made and seeks to correct or make right rather than rationalize or justify the problem.

Exemplary - To serve as a model or example of positive action; strive for high performance standards and deliver results. Demonstrate technical competence. Set high standards for self, demonstrating integrity and superior customer service skills.

Responsibility – Responsibility is acting with initiative and understanding that our organization and our customers are depending on us.

Service - Service is everything we do to exceed the needs and expectations of our customers at all times.

Safety – Demonstrate the importance of safety and how it may influence our daily lives.

Scott Rotert

Scott Rotert joins the Lincolnshire office. He grew up in Pocahontas, Iowa. He moved to Nebraska in 1996. Scott and his wife Stephanie have one son and two cats. His hobbies include golf, riding his motorcycle and reading. Scott can be reached at 402-440-6538 or Scott.Rotert@woodsbros.com.

Laura Horak

Laura Horak joins the Grand Island office. She grew up in St. Paul, Nebraska. After marriage, Laura and her husband moved many times, St. Libory, McCook, York and now they have settled in Grand Island. They have three grown children and can’t wait to be grandparents. Her hobbies include crafts, scrap booking and bowling. Laura can be reached at 308-380-0058 or Laura.Horak@woodsbros.com.

1. An open floor plan. Most people just seem to love going into a new house and seeing the living room and the kitchen as one big area. Most seem to want the ability to be in the kitchen and visit with someone in the great room at the same time.
2. A large kitchen with a walk-in pantry and granite countertops. The kitchen is often the focal point of the entire house and new home buyers want their kitchen to stand out. Granite countertops are wildly popular as they make kitchens look richer. A walk-in pantry provides sufficient space for items that won’t fit in the kitchen cabinets.
3. A mud room. Most new construction homes are built with a mud room. Typically this is the first room you enter when walking into the home through the garage. Also called a “drop zone,” it is a great place to leave coats, shoes and other items carried into the house. Most have cubby holes or lockers for coats or at least coat hooks. That makes it easy to grab your coat and run when you leave the house. Many times this room also doubles as the laundry room.
4. A master suite. This consists of a large master bedroom with a master bath that includes a walk-in tiled shower, a jetted or soaker tub and a double sink vanity. The walk-in master closet can either be off the bedroom itself or the bathroom.
5. A large rec-room in the finished basement. A finished rec-room gives a family double the living space and serves as a place to kick back and relax. It’s a great place for a large flat screen television and casual and comfy furniture.
6. Plenty of storage. Let’s face it – people have “stuff” and they need places to put it. Much new construction today leaves large unfinished spaces – usually where the furnace and water heater are – for storage.
7. Great floors – wood, tile – anything but vinyl. Wood flooring in the kitchen and dining area is fairly standard today in most new construction. Many people are even eschewing carpet in the great room in favor of wood floors. Wood colors range from light to dark and all provide a look of richness. Tile is demanded in bathrooms, laundry rooms and entry ways where wood is not present.
8. Well-placed laundry rooms. Laundry rooms no longer are relegated to the basement. In newer homes, they are expected to be on the main level or even on the upper level by the bedrooms in two-story houses. It’s a convenience thing – people just don’t want to carry laundry to and from the basement anymore.
9. Three-car (and even bigger) garages. You will notice that the majority of newly-built homes today have three car garages. Builders understand that families have multiple cars today and single and double garages just aren’t big enough.
10. Covered deck. Who doesn’t like a deck in their back yard – even more so when it has a roof over it. A covered deck gives people a great outdoor living space.

Matt Garner

Matt Garner joins the Country Club office. He grew up in Hyannis, NE. He moved to Lincoln in 2003. He and his wife Mandy have a two year old child. His hobbies include fishing, rental property and spending time with family. Matt can be reached at 402-613-3709 or Matt.Garner @woodsbros.com.

Karalyn Hoefer

Woods Bros Realty agents and staff helped to raise more than $2,000 during the fourth annual Soup or Chili Cook-off for Cancer Wednesday in Lincoln.

The Chili Cook-Off raised $2,190 for the American Cancer Society through voting beans and cookbooks sold. The group has raised a total of nearly $8,000 to date.

This year the Celebrity Judge Award went to Karalyn Hoefer of the Woods Bros Realty Wilderness Hills office for her Southwest corn chowder. Celebrity judges were Channel 8 Eyewitness News Anchor Rod Fowler, Country Club of Lincoln Executive Chef Lorin Dagel, and Miss Star City Kalyssa Hoefer.

Lorin Dagel, Kalyssa Hoefer, Rod Fowler & Gene Brake

The People’s Choice Award (with the most beans) went to Donna Melichar of the HOME Real Estate Pine Lake office. Deb Wagner of the Woods Bros Realty Lincolnshire Square office won second place, and Regina Kastrup of the HOME North office won third. Voters were made up of Woods Bros and HOME agents and staff, along with staff from Nebraska Land Title and Abstract, HomeServices Lending, HomeServices of Nebraska Insurance and Larabee School of Real Estate.

“We’ve had a lot of cancer within our organization, and it’s just affected so many families, so many agents, that we wanted to do something,” HomeServices of Nebraska CEO Gene Brake said. “This was our way of participating and trying to help find a cure.”

The 2013 participants from Woods Bros were: Deb Wagner, Lincolnshire Square; Karalyn Hoefer, Wilderness Hills; and Jo Deyong, Country Club Plaza. Connie Hain represented the Support Services office, and Samantha Kinnett and Mary Pro cooked for NLTA.

View photos from the event here.

Channel 8 covered the event as well.

Celebrity guest judges this year are: Channel 8 Eyewitness News Anchor Rod Fowler, Country Club of Lincoln Executive Chef Lorin Dagel, and Miss Star City Kalyssa Hoefer. All of the proceeds go to the local American Cancer Society. The group raised about $1,200 in 2010, $1,700 in 2011, and $2,975 in 2012, with $1,840 going to the American Cancer Society and the remainder to support an agent’s transplant fund.

“Cancer has affected so many of our family of agents and employees that we wanted to find a way to support this worthwhile cause and put the heat on cancer,” said HomeServices of Nebraska CEO Gene Brake.

Woods Bros agents and staff, along with staff from Nebraska Land Title and Abstract (NLTA), HomeServices Lending, HomeServices of Nebraska Insurance and Larabee School of Real Estate vote for their favorite soup or chili with purchased voting beans. The winning chef gets bragging rights and his/her name on the Top Chef plaque.

The 2013 participants from Woods Bros are: Deb Wagner, Lincolnshire Square; Karalyn Hoefer, Wilderness Hills; and Jo Deyong, Country Club Plaza. Connie Hain is cooking for the Support Services office, and Samantha Kinnett and Mary Pro are cooking for NLTA.