Lana Baldus of Cedar Rapids Receives Political Involvement Award from the Iowa Association of REALTORS®

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Lana Baldus, winner of the 2010 L. Martin Lee Political Involvement Award

CLIVE, IA (10/13/2010)(readMedia)-- The Iowa Association of REALTORS® (IAR) announced Cedar Rapids REALTOR® Lana Baldus as the 2010 winner of the L. Martin Lee Political Involvement Award. The IAR presented the honor and other special awards at its Inaugural Gala held on Sept. 23 in Dubuque.

The prestigious L. Martin Lee Political Involvement Award recognizes an individual who has significantly advanced the legislative agenda of the IAR through political involvement.

Baldus, a long-time REALTOR® and leader in the Cedar Rapids community, is a broker-associate at Skogman Realty in Cedar Rapids. She has been a licensed REALTOR® in Iowa since 1977. "Lana has dedicated countless hours to serving her local board, the IAR, and the National Association of REALTORS® in the past twenty-plus years," says Kurt Schade, president of the IAR. "She has worked tirelessly to positively impact private property rights and the real estate industry. Lana has consistently given her time and money to champion the REALTOR® Political Action Committee and the REALTOR® Political Education Committee, helping to raise thousands of dollars of support."

Baldus has been active in the IAR for nearly three decades. She served as president in 2001, received the REALTOR® of the Year Award in 2003, and was inducted into the Omega Tau Rho service fraternity in 2003. She has been a Sterling "R" REALTOR® Political Action Committee (RPAC) contributor for nine years, a Crystal "R" Contributor for one year, and is currently the RPAC committee chair. She has also chaired and currently serves on numerous other IAR committees. She served as president of the Iowa Chapter of the Certified Residential Specialist (CRS), and was named CRS REALTOR® of the year in 1995.

She has held several leadership positions with the National Association of REATLORS® (NAR) including Past National Director, and Current Member of the MLS and Cultural Diversity Committee.

Baldus also provides leadership on her local board, the Cedar Rapids Board of REALTORS®. She served as president in 1986, chair of the RPAC committee, and chair of various other committees. She holds several of the real estate field's highest professional designations including Accredited Buyer Representative (ABR), Certified Real Estate Brokerage Manager (CRB), Certified Residential Specialist (CRS), and Graduate Realtor Institute (GRI).

In addition, Baldus contributes a great deal of time and energy to her community. She is the current chair of the Cedar Rapids Planning Commission, and a member of the Linn County Compensation Commission for Condemnation Purposes.

The L. Martin Lee Political Involvement Award was first presented in 2002, named after IAR's chief executive officer at that time, L. Martin Lee.

The Iowa Association of REALTORS® is the state's largest real estate professional organization, representing more than 6,700 members and affiliates. The term REALTOR® is a registered and protected trademark. A REALTOR® is a member of the National Association of REALTORS®, the State Association of REALTORS® and their local Board of REALTORS®. By joining the REALTOR® organization, a real estate professional has to adhere to a strict Code of Ethics and its standards of professionalism, integrity and competence.