Dani Blain Real Estate Team

Kevin Blain Memorial Scholarship 2021 Recipients

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Giving back to the communities we serve and live in, is at the core of what we do and how we operate Dani Blain Real Estate. If you have been reading our blog or following along with our social media channels, you know that we work with a number of local nonprofits and charitable groups throughout the year to deliver on this mission to give. One of our most favorite opportunities for giving is with the Kevin Blain Memorial Scholarship program, where we award deserving graduating seniors scholarship monies to pursue further education or trade school. 

This year, we were excited to have expanded our scholarship program to encompass all Tulare and Visalia high schools and are excited to award students that are looking to pursue careers in the mental health field, in addition to the previous criteria of those who are well deserving based on their character, leadership, volunteerism, demonstrated heart for others, and faith in Christ. 

Kevin Blain was born and raised in Tulare. As he became an adult and worked toward a successful career, here in the Central Valley, he wanted to give back to the community that supported him during his youth. In his honor, Dani Blain Real Estate has continued his legacy of giving by working with local high schools to provide this scholarship opportunity. 

This year we had an incredible crop of young adults apply for the scholarship and our committee had a very hard time deciding who to award these nine $500 scholarships. In the end, the decisions were made and we were able to bless our recipients prior to their graduation and we could not be happier to tell you all a little bit about each of them. Without further ado, please meet this year’s Kevin Blain Scholarship recipients: 

Alekhya Rajasekaran graduated from El Diamante high school with a 4.47 GPA and has plans for a double major in Biology and Economics with the hopes of becoming a physician. Not only was Alekhya an incredibly involved student in clubs and volunteer work, she is also the CEO of her own company, Kalifornia Kisses.

Ella Reitsma graduated from Visalia Charter Independent Study High School with a 4.26 GPA and has made plans for a Optometry career and will be majoring in Biology. Ella is a true survivor and has overcome many difficulties in her life. She chose to turn them around, help others through volunteering and help take care of her younger siblings. 

Giana Hollingsworth graduated from Mount Whitney Highschool with a 4.39 GPA and is headed to a state university to study Animal Science/Livestock to pursue a career as a veterinarian. In addition to participating in numerous clubs, she was also on the  basketball and tennis teams as well as a member of the concert choir. 

Isabella Caso graduated from Mission Oaks High School with a 3.67 GPA. She is very involved with her community volunteering and serving others through school clubs, her church and United Way of Tulare County. She dreams of pursuing a career teaching music in her home county of Tulare upon graduation from California State University at Fresno where she will start in the Fall. 

Jacqueline Canchola-Martinez attended Redwood High School and graduated with a 4.54 GPA. Not only was she very active in clubs, the marching band and the soccer team, but she also founded  Students for Climate Action and was an active member in VUSD’s Equity Task Force & Civic engagement Project. She plans on studying Environmental and Political Science to go into Environmental Law and Policy. 

Jessica Amber Lytle graduated from Tulare Union High School with a 4.0 GPA with her sights set on a Liberal Arts degree to be a Speech Pathologist. She has overcome some very difficult times in her family and stayed busy throughout highschool with volunteering, clubs and sports – she was on the golf, dive, and soccer teams. 

Lilly Sear graduated from Visalia Early Technical College with a 4.14 GPA. She will be attending Humboldt State University in the fall and will study Zoology to become a Zoologist. Upon graduation she is heading to college with 42 college credits as she was dually enrolled at College of the Sequoias while she was in high school. 

Sydney Noell attended Golden West High School and 4.37 GPA and has aspirations of becoming a Chemistry teacher. She was very involved in FFA, multiple clubs, as well as a member of the swim and dive team, and the tennis team. Additionally she was an avid volunteer serving as a worship leader and Younglife Leader. 

Ty Benas graduated from Tulare Western high school with a 3.7 GPA. He plans to attend the College of Western Idaho to study Fire Science to become a firefighter/EMT. Ty actually knew Kevin through his mom, which makes receiving this scholarship extra special. He was on the swim and water polo teams and has already completed the EMT academy. 

These nine recent grads make us feel excited for the future – as they are all such impressive young people. It has been an honor to be able to bless more students this year than ever. We want to make sure that all of our readers know that our scholarship fund would not be possible without our wonderful clients that trust us with all of their Real Estate needs. Thank you for helping us keep Kevin’s legacy alive with this Memorial Scholarship Fund and helping us contribute to our future’s greatest asset – our youth. Please feel free to contact us with any questions or of course for any of your Real Estate matters. 

Giving Feature: A Village of Hope

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Before Dani Blain Real Estate came to life, we knew we wanted to create a culture of agents and team members who truly understand that we are not here just to help people buy and sell houses, but rather truly lead with our servant hearts. We believe we are blessed so that we can bless others. Giving back is at the forefront of our brokerage and as a real estate family, our agents participate in many of the giving opportunities that are ongoing within the brokerage each month. We even have some cases where our agents are the ones leading the charge! 

For the month of June we have proudly supported a non-profit called Village of Hope International. We are so proud and eager to support our agents who are working hard to help here in the valley and in places people need it most. For years David Schlick, one of our newer agents, has been traveling south of the border to not only volunteer and lead teams of missionaries, but to truly sow the seeds of hope for the indigenous people of the Mixteco village in southern Mexico. 

When he saw the poverty and need that this village was in, he and some other friends knew they had to do more. They saw what the local community center, The Village of Hope was doing to provide hope to the working poor (most of whom are farm laborers who make $12 to $14 a day) and wanted to expand the great work already happening, so in 2017 they started a nonprofit called the Village of Hope International.

They raise about $200,000 a year which funds a feeding program that serves more than a 1,000 meals a week, has two youth soccer teams, two churches reaching more than 500 weekly, a seminary, after school tutoring, literacy program, career training and home building. To date, the Village has built more than 240 homes of hope. These homes have a cement foundation, a main living space, two bedrooms, a loft and electrical. For about $6,000 they are able to build a house and radically transform life for a hardworking family.

David has set his sights and has a goal to fund 10 homes this year. Slowly but surely he is making it happen. But he knows he can’t reach this goal of 10 homes alone. We are happy to report that several local agents have given generously to help with this lofty goal. One agent has committed to funding one home a year. Another agent gave him a prequalified client which led to a sale currently in escrow. He has a photographer who is a former student who shoots all of David’s listings for free. David also works with other partners in the industry who donate all or portions of their service fees to support this cause.

We are so inspired by David and all of those who have contributed to the Village of Hope. If you would like to give or go on a 5-day home build trip  you can contact him at dave.schlick@gmail.com or (559)679-5733. We encourage you to visit his website that has even more info on his goals and mission to provide as much as he can for this community in great need.

Dreaming Big with Bob Goff

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If you follow us on Instagram, you may have seen that we had a very special Brokerage Meeting last week with the one and only Bob Goff. While the original plan was for the brokerage to head down to his amazing retreat center in San Diego – COVID had different plans. Instead, we had this best selling author and encourager speak to us (via Zoom) and deliver a strong and powerful message!

If you aren’t familiar with Bob Goff, you are missing out! He’s  an amazing person who has done so much with his time on Earth. He began his career as a lawyer, then quit to begin writing and speaking full time. He has written some of our favorite books Love Does, Everybody Always, and most recently, Dream Big. Bob is someone Dani has always been motivated and inspired by. She knew after learning about his retreat center she had to connect her team with the opportunity to learn from him. 

Dani believes strongly, and says regularly, that “we are blessed so that we can bless others.”  Giving back is something she does in our communities and also with our agents. To have a successful brokerage, you need successful agents. At Dani Blain Real Estate there is a huge emphasis on growing and supporting our agents to help them be successful in their businesses. It is a cyclical effect in motion every day at DBRE… we support our agents’ success and in turn  agents support their clients’ success. Happy clients share their experience with their circle who hopefully come back to DBRE to manage their next real estate project… and so the cycle goes. A ‘better-together’ kind of relationship.

In the spirit of blessing others, Dani knew that blessing her agents and team with the gift of Bob Goff was exactly what she wanted to do to kick off 2021. Bob’s message of dreaming big was the perfect way to shape our goals and motivations for the year ahead. Bob’s message was somewhat simple but also profound:

“What do you want? Why do you want it? What are you going to do about it?”

Bob inspired us to stop and ask ourselves these questions. Once we know what we want, and why we want it – it is time for us to figure out what we are going to do about it. He shared that progress looks like putting yourself adjacent to the next best step, especially if the step you really want or need isn’t attainable quite yet. Keep moving in the direction of what you want, one action at a time, keeping yourself adjacent to things and people that can help make your dream a reality. We love this actionable way to work towards our goals! 

We also really loved a little secret he let us in on. Did you know that he cuts the left pocket out of all of his pants? Listen to what a cool idea this is… he believes you should always be careful about what you put in your pockets. Only keep things in there you really need (keys, wallet, etc… as the actual/tangible things in our pockets, i.e. metaphor for life.) And then each day, imagine that right pocket filled with some of the stuff you may be holding on to – some of the hurts and setbacks, the things that didn’t go your way… and move them on over to the  left pocket. A physical act of letting them go. Because the bottom line is, you’re never going to be a newer creation or the current,  most recent and best version of you, if you’re hanging on to all of that stuff you don’t need anymore. Boom! Isn’t that such a great exercise? We hope you will give it a try with us. 

Lastly, we will leave you with the message Bob left us with… he said “be a norm breaker – you don’t have to be what everyone else tells you you are.” Isn’t that so motivating and a bit of a relief? What are you going to do that is going to break the norm and break out of what people have told you you are? We encourage you to dream big and remember us if you need help getting that dream accomplished. 

Gratitude and Giving

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The season of giving and gratitude is upon us! At Dani Blain Real Estate (DBRE), we have a heart for the specific needs in our community and we believe we are blessed so that we can bless others. This is something that Dani and her late husband Kevin started doing together before DBRE – so now that this Brokerage has grown, so has our giving. We are very pleased and proud to be able to serve our community every month and we are hoping with the holidays just around the corner, you will join us in our upcoming endeavors. 

We are better together! 

One of our most favorite giving opportunities has been our annual pumpkin pie giveaway. Well, this year it is expanding because we are partnering with V1st Church, Grocery Outlet, The Blake Shawn Team, Justin Hite Real Estate Team, Home Warranty of America, and Spirit 88.9 to feed 250 families this Thanksgiving. 

We feel very strongly that everyone deserves a family meal on Thanksgiving. Our very own Justin Hite Real Estate Team is providing all the turkeys, our partner team and volunteers have covered the sides, and as always we will have our pumpkin pies to make a full dinner! If you or someone you know could use a good, wholesome meal this Thanksgiving, please follow this link to receive one, click here.

#FeedOurFamilies 

You can help us feed our families in our Central Valley community with FoodLink of Tulare County  who is working hard to ensure everyone in need of a warm meal throughout the holiday season, receives one. We are very excited to kick off this local effort with $1,000 – where $1 provides 4 meals! To learn more about this or to donate, please click here. Anything you can do to help our local families would make a huge difference – you can help through December 31st. 

Coats & Cookies

This holiday season we are partnering with the Lighthouse Rescue Mission to provide new or gently used coats to those in need. Our plan is to make things a bit more sweet for those receiving the coats, so when we deliver them there will be plenty of delicious cookies to ring in the holidays. Will you join us in helping accomplish our goal of collecting as many women’s, men’s, teens and kids coats as we can? You can drop off coat donations at the Dani Blain Real Estate Office in Visalia now through December 17th. 

We find great joy in not only serving and giving back to our community, but to also raise awareness about the local needs in our community while highlighting the non-profits that serve them. This allows for more individuals and businesses to come together and help. This has been an especially difficult year for a great deal of Americans, and some of our own Central Valley families. We are hopeful that by spreading awareness, expressing some specific needs, and actionable items that some of the people in our network can help. If you are someone that is able, please consider helping us make someone’s holiday season a little brighter. Thank you and may God bless you and yours this season of giving. 

Supporting local conservation and Creek Fire relief

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Every month Dani Blain Real Estate gives back to the community. We feel strongly that creating a community of unity and connection starts with blessing others as we are blessed. This month our giving is growing in a new direction toward local land conservation and for the immediate relief of those affected by the Creek Fire.

Our community is part its people and part its natural resources. The Central Valley is home to wonderful people who steward the land and help it grow our food and fiber and also nurture our natural places where we find respite among the rivers, trails and trees. El Rio Reyes Conservation Trust, a local non-profit land trust based in Reedley (Fresno County), works with landowners to protect these vital lands and resources that are an integral part of the fabric of our community. Their mission is to safeguard the Kings River and its lands for future generations. This month during their annual fundraising event they will be donating funds to support the Creek Fire that’s devastating our mountain forest lands, ranch lands, and burning our neighbors homes.

During the entire month of October, El Rio Reyes is hosting their annual Bob Frisch Memorial Ride & Walk ‘virtually’ and everyone can join in to help them reach their fundraising goal of $10,000. It’s easy – find them on Facebook and plan to get out with your family and friends on a trail, through an orchard, or along the river – on foot, horseback, or floating and donate to them for every mile you go! Your gift amount is your choice – so track your miles or not, but please post about it on their page and encourage more people to get out and enjoy what El Rio Reyes ensures we can all enjoy now and for future generations – local food from local farms and healthy, thriving lands.

We hope you will join us this month in supporting El Rio Reyes Conservation Trust and their mission to ensure local landowners stay on the land managing it for our benefit and to help those affected by the Creek Fire – animals and people alike.

To donate with us, visit: DONATE NOW

To learn more about El Rio Reyes, visit: their Website

“It is Better to Give than to Receive”

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“It is better to give than to receive” – a letter from Dani Blain

August Giving: Campus Life & Dani Blain Real Estate

Dear Friends,

You have heard us say it before, “we are blessed so that we may bless others”. Our brokerage is built on the ideas that we are here to serve our community, that when you succeed we do, and as your partnership serves us we will always turn that back around and serve our community.

As Covid-19 continues to make huge impacts on our community I wanted to share with you something we have committed to doing and offer you an opportunity to partner with us. As we all know the virus has forced schools to close and students are staying home. Not all students have a home life where their needs are met and they feel safe and supported. Not being at school cuts them off from vital services and especially friendships and mentors they need most.  I recently learned there are thousands of students who are losing their mentors and support system usually provided through programs at school.

Tulare-Kings Counties Campus Life is one of those vital service providers. Campus Life is a community-based organization impacting the lives of teenagers throughout Tulare and Kings Counties. They serve as Gang Interventionists, Life Coaches, and Chaplains who meet the needs of students to help them be successful in life. The students they serve are at risk and being away from school where mentors can support them can pose heavier and more difficult circumstances than ever before.

When Tulare and Kings County school systems shut down, Campus Life programs were cut as well. The 6,000 students they were serving attending 40 different schools have been greatly affected.

Even though half of the local Campus Life staff team has been cut due to budget restraints, they are still serving and meeting the needs of local students the best they can. But they need our help.

Dani Blain Real Estate is committed to giving $5,000 in the month of August to support this important organization serving our local at-risk youth. These kids are our future. I am asking you to join me in matching this gift. For every dollar you give, we will give another dollar up to $5,000. This means our $5,000 can become $10,000 with your help. If we can do this together we can serve more than 30 students immediately. Your gift will help Campus Life reach more young people this year who are struggling through life.

We must help expand this program because there are so many kids who need their help. I see this program as first-responders to kids who need help. They have no one to listen to them and care for their needs. In Campus Life small groups, they are finding that nearly 90% of the teens have no positive male role-model in their lives. Their families are broken, and they walk through life with no hope.

We cannot hear this and not help to the best of our ability, right now. Please consider joining us. You can make a gift online: it’s fast, secure, and much needed.

You can also learn more about Campus Life and their work by visiting, www.tkyfc.com.

With much gratitude for your time and consideration,

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Dani Blain

Acts 20:35

“And I have been a constant example of how you can help those in need by working hard. You should remember the words of the Lord Jesus: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”

2020 Scholarship Recipients

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Announcing our 2020 Kevin Blain Memorial Scholarship Recipients

In order to honor and continue Kevin Blain’s legacy of supporting the youth in his community, Dani Blain Brokerage began the Kevin Blain Memorial Scholarship Fund where we award deserving Tulare High School students with their sights set on furthering their education after graduation with $500 each. We love knowing we can give back to the community that Kevin was born and raised in that supported him in his youth and later as he grew his business and created a successful career here in the Central Valley. We look forward to every spring as we work with Tulare high schools to submit our scholarship application packet to their eligible students. This year’s scholarship committee, comprised of staff, agents and members of our executive leadership committee, had the very hard job of selecting the most deserving applicants. Ultimately, the graduates that were selected showed great character, leadership, volunteerism, and demonstrated that they have a heart to serve others and faith in Christ. 

As we all know, the Class of 2020 did not get to have a typical Senior year of high school leaving school abruptly in March with the COVID-19 Pandemic. They missed out on a lot of the senior experiences many of us had and remember fondly. It has become apparent though, that among these graduates is a group of young adults that make us feel like the future is in good hands. This generation is full of people forced to become adaptable and to make the best out of difficult situations. Our scholarship recipients are headed on to bright futures and we are so blessed to be able to help them financially as they transition into college. We are very excited to introduce our Class of 2020 recipients:

Isaiah Borjon is headed to Gardner Webb University (GWU), a top Christian college in North Carolina to play Division 1 soccer, where he plans to study Theology and aspires to play professional soccer. He has already had a taste of what playing soccer abroad would be like when he played in Spain his Sophomore year in High School. He graduated with a 3.0 GPA, as a member of the Bible Club, Link Crew, ASB, and was in the Christian Fellowship of Athletes Club, while still managing to play in his church band. Isaiah is sure to be a success in his future endeavors and we are excited to see where his time at GWU will take him. 

Kortney Hamilton not only graduated in the top 6% of her class with a 4.17 GPA, she was also a three sport athlete (Volleyball, Soccer, and Softball), an award winning artist, and was very involved in school clubs. She was a member of the Art Club, MECHA, the Christian Fellowship of Athletes Club, and the Black Student Union Club. In her multiple missions trips to Mexico and Nicaragua, and her volunteer experience at her church’s VBS, she learned that she would like to pursue a career in architecture or teaching. We are certain that whether she ends up at Cal Poly, Fresno State, or Grand Canyon University (she hasn’t decided which of these she will attend just yet) that she will make us proud and we are so happy to offer her one of these scholarships.

Lilia Mora is headed to a local community college before she plans on transferring to CSU Bakersfield to pursue a career in nursing. As a four year member of the Pre-Med Club, a volunteer at the SPCA, earning her way onto the Honor Roll for all four years, and ultimately graduating with a 3.74 overall GPA, she showed us through her application that she’s dedicated to her studies and goals. Lilia also played piano and sang for her church band and has already taken part in a nursing program that started in August of 2019 and wrapped up this spring. Despite some tough times in her family, she stayed dedicated to her studies and we could tell from her application that she is committed to her dreams of becoming a nurse and we are so pleased to be able to contribute to part of her tuition next semester. 

Our final recipient, Kambrya Persinger is headed off to Fresno State to pursue a career as a public accountant. She graduated with a 4.29 GPA and as the valedictorian of her class. She kept very busy in her four years at Tulare High involved in ASB, Interact Club, Project Z, as well as playing on the tennis, soccer, and track & field teams. In addition to being on the Honor Roll all four years, she also received the impressive Perfect Attendance Award (wow!).  Somehow she also found time to volunteer with Harvest for Hope, Young Life, and participated in two Missions trips! We happen to know her well, because she worked as an office assistant for us during her junior year. We saw first-hand that this girl is going places and we are so proud of her and all of her achievements. 

During the uncertain times that we are all facing, we are glad to contribute in some way to these promising and deserving members of the Class of 2020. We are also excited to announce that Dani Blain Brokerage will be expanding our scholarship program in 2021 to all Tulare County High schools and hope to award students that are looking to also to pursue careers in the mental health field. Part of what makes this scholarship fund possible, is by our wonderful clients that trust us with all of their Real Estate needs. Without you, none of this would be possible… so, thank you for helping us keep Kevin’s name and legacy alive with this Memorial Scholarship Fund and helping us contribute to our future’s greatest asset – our youth. 

In loving memory of Kevin Blain

#FeedOurFamilies

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FoodLink and Dani Blain Real Estate Partner to #FeedOurFamilies

At Dani Blain Real Estate (DBRE) we have a heart for the specific needs in our community and we believe we are blessed so that we can bless others. We believe in giving back to groups or individuals whose mission or endeavors help make our community a better place. FoodLink of Tulare County is one of those critical non-profits serving our community during these unprecedented times. 

FoodLink is Tulare County’s only independent food bank, serving between 300,000-450,000 households a year.  Typically, this time of year FoodLink is serving 20,000 people monthly; for the month of April, FoodLink served over 52,000 people. To us, making our community a better place looks like caring for those who need it most.

FoodLink needs our help to serve local families in need!

Dani Blain Real Estate is working with FoodLink to launch a matching gift campaign during the month of June. For every dollar given to FoodLink through this special giving link, GIVE HERE, DBRE will match up to $10,000! That means every dollar you give can become two, making this $10,000 gift $20,000!

“With $20,000, we can provide 10,000 mealsfor local families that need our help.  When you donate to FoodLink. you know that your dollars are staying local and providing meals to your friends and neighbors.  Since COVID-19, all of our distribution numbers have dramatically increased by 150%, and all the support you give right now helps provide food as well as builds health, skills, and community, ” said Nicole Celaya, Executive Director, FoodLink of Tulare County.

By working together to support FoodLink we can ensure that our community’s most vulnerable… hungry children, seniors, homebound elderly and disabled, as well as self-isolating patients and families in need with healthy, nutritious food.

“We have chosen to give to FoodLink of Tulare County because they are serving the community we live and work in,” said Dani Blain. “I know what it is like to be hungry and now that I am not, I can’t watch others go through what I did. Our hope is that this giving campaign brings our community together to feed our families in need.”

Together we can #FeedOurFamilies. Your gift stays local to meet local needs. Join us, your local real estate brokerage and FoodLink to serve our families and neighbors in need.

Consider a gift today, follow this link to #FeedOurFamilies.

UPDATE: as of June 4 @ 3PM total gifts = $2,520!!!

Luke 6:38
“Give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.”