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Lesley's Life
Lesley Lambert, REALTOR with Park Square Realty in Westfield, MA Named one of Banker & Tradesmen’s “Women of FIRE”
I am so humbled and excited to share with you that I was named one of 15 recipients of Banker & Tradesmen’s “Women of FIRE” (Finance, Insurance and Real Estate).
From the Banker & Tradesmen webpage:
“Banker & Tradesman has named its 2013 Women of FIRE honorees, an annual award recognizing the key female players in the local FIRE (Finance, Insurance and Real Estate) sector. The third annual Women of FIRE award celebrates the best and the brightest women in the Massachusetts FIRE industry. With the help of Banker & Tradesman readers, a group of judges sorted through dozens of nominations and chose 15 brilliant, innovative leaders to be named this year’s Women of FIRE.
“We searched for the best of the best – those women who are making a difference through innovation, hard work, team-building, philanthropy, mentoring or leadership – and these women demonstrate these exemplary qualities,” said Timothy M. Warren Jr., CEO of The Warren Group, publisher of Banker & Tradesman.”
Special HUGE thank you to my good friend Jaclyn Stevenson of Winstanley for nominating me!
I am very excited to be included in such a prestigious group of women from around the state and look forward to meeting them through this process.
Lesley Lambert, REALTOR, Park Square Realty covering the Pioneer Valley and Western Massachusetts real estate for 24 years!
This isn’t your ordinary “Just Listed” post
I just took a new listing this morning that I am even more excited about than usual. Why is that, you wonder?
Well, because I used to live there! But it is even better than that…my mom was the original owner of the home which she designed and built in 1987.
Last week I was researching and mailing notes to people who were selling their home For Sale By Owner. As I was scrolling through Craigslist ads a photo jumped out at me and I said out loud, “That’s my house!”. Of course, it isn’t REALLY my house, but I always loved the home and had such great memories of my time living there. I wrote to the owners that I used to live there and that if they decided to hire a REALTOR, I would love the chance to work with them.
Yesterday I met with them to tour the house and discuss their plans.
As I crossed the threshold I resisted an overwhelming urge to yell out “I’m home!”.
While many things have been changed and updated since I lived there, the distinctive floor plan and one-of-a-kind features that my mother so carefully installed were all still there and I was transported back in time. Flooded with memories of holidays and parties, I toured the home in a sort of split screen awareness. 
Stepping down to the basement I laughed and exclaimed, “I can’t believe no one washed this off!”. My sister, Michelle (known to many as Mich), myself and our friends had done graffiti on the basement walls with chalk. The current owners are the fourth since we moved out and no one ever washed it off or painted over it in all that time. There used to be an old gold couch and a pool table down there. Memories awoke of cranking records and hanging out with friends on a Friday night.
The home has a beautiful double sided open fireplace that splits the formal living room and family room. It now has a gas insert, but I recounted the tale of the time I started a fire at a Christmas party and smoked everyone out and then froze them as we aired the house. The living room has a cathedral ceiling with a balcony overlooking it and I remembered the band that we had playing up in the balcony, I thought that was very swanky.
In the bathroom that my sister and I once shared I told the tale of the time my mother hired a cleaning person to come and they had to use a razor to scrape the layers of Aquanet hairspray (It was the 80’s remember) off the counter top.
As I toured the yard I remembered the hours I spent on the temperamental riding mower which I learned how to repair and my small flower garden that I was so proud of. I pictured my Trans Am parked in the extra parking space that my parents added for my car.
I will do a traditional “Just Listed” post on this home, but it is too special of a listing not to share the wonderful tale of 19 Tow Path Lane, Westfield, MA.
It isn’t often we get to tour our childhood homes and even more rare that we get the opportunity to work as the REALTOR on the sale. I will enjoy every moment of marketing this fine home as I stroll through my memories.
Lesley Lambert, Park Square Realty 413-575-3611
Open House 48 Pineridge Drive, Westfield, MA 01085 – Sunday June 23, 2013
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Top Ten Reasons to Love Southwick, MA
I have told you all before that I am a Southwick native.
I lived there my entire childhood and, like most kids, couldn’t wait to move out of my hometown. (Incidentally, I moved all the way far away to Westfield). It wasn’t until I was solidly in my adulthood that I started to look at Southwick with new eyes. There was one day in my early 20’s that I vividly recall driving down College Highway and being smacked with the realization that Southwick was simply beautiful. How had I lived there, driven up and down that very stretch of road daily and never noticed just how lovely the barns are with the rising mountain behind them? How had I missed the lovely lines of a stately farmhouse or the rolling lushness of a fallow tobacco field? How had I never noticed the rosy glow of the sunset over Congamond Lakes? At that point, I made a vow to pay more attention to the beauty that was right there and relish the unexpected loveliness in the familiar landscapes.
Dedicated to this cause, I drove the streets and country roads that I had traversed thousands of times in my youth, but this time I really soaked it up. I looked for the scenic spots and I stopped and took in the sights and scents of the area. I immersed myself in all things Southwick and made an effort to spend more time being social in Southwick.
Do you know what happened next?
I fell in love. I fell in love with my hometown of Southwick and I have never stopped loving it since.
While I retained my love for my hometown in the years after this, the vivid urgency in rediscovery had faded and I started to take this lovely town for granted again, until this past weekend. I held an open house on Pineywood Road in Southwick last Sunday and a high school friend of mine came by to see the house and ended up staying the length of the event chatting. In the course of our conversation we shared the reasons that Southwick tugs at our hearts and draws us geographically. We have a mutual fondness for the scenery, but it is the people that make this town special. There is a unique bonding to the residents and an old fashioned concern for neighbors, friends and even old classmates that isn’t as common as it should be. Some people don’t like small town life or even Southwick, specifically, because they find that everyone is in everyone else’s business. My friend and I decided a couple of things about that: #1- they are usually only interested because they care about you somehow, #2- even those that are interested for the wrong reasons are not typically malicious and #3- when push comes to shove, Southwickians have each other’s back.
No matter how you look at it, Southwick, MA is an amazing small town in Western Massachusetts and there are many reasons to love it. I decided to ask my Southwick friends on Facebook why they love the town and here are some of their responses along with my own additions to the “Top Ten Reasons To Love Southwick, MA”
#1 – The Summer House.
Did you know that the original Summer House was run by Friendly’s and was really only open in the Summer? It was much smaller than it is now. I lived on Sefton Drive and would take a shortcut through the woods and the yard of the Lutheran Church to get my ice cream cone there on a hot day. Now it is a year round family style restaurant with fun outdoor seating and a wooden stationary train that the kids love.
#2- Mrs. Murphy’s
No question about it, these are THE BEST DONUTS ever. I don’t even like donuts and I love Mrs. Murphy’s. This hometown operation is legendary and people who move away make sure to take a special trip here when they are home. It still has the old fashioned feel of a coffee shop and there is nothing more yummy than a cinnamon donut from Mrs. Murphy’s. My breakfast in high school was often a coconut donut from Mrs. Murphy’s purchased in the cafeteria. If you live in Western MA and haven’t been, you need a road trip STAT.
#3- The Congamond Lakes
I never appreciated the fact that Southwick is a lake community as a kid. I am not sure why, but I do now. A year or so ago, I took a lovely sunset cruise on the lake with some friends and we saw the most amazing sunset over a glass of wine. Another day the kids were tubing and swimming and I always love to listen to the bands at Louie B’s. Amusing geographical fact, the reason for the “jog” in the Massachusetts border is probably so that MA could retain most of the Congamond Lakes. On my Facebook poll my boyfriend, Morriss, added this: “…Southwickians are keeping a whole bunch of land that ought to belong to Connecticut in the mitts of the Massachusettonians.”
#4- Farmstands
Many people in my informal Facebook poll said that they love all of the farmstands. There does seem to be a seasonal farmstand all over the place, but my year round favorite is Putnam Farms/ Blossoming Acres. In Southwick you will find the best that Western MA produce can provide including corn, strawberries, asparagus, apples and much more!
#5- The Granville Gorge
Not just a spot for delinquent teenagers to hide out (not that I would know ANYTHING about THAT), the Gorge is an absolutely amazing spot for a hike, brisk dunk in the mountain waters or a picnic. While the name would suggest it is in Granville, it is still within Southwick town borders and is worth a day trip for sure. I hadn’t been in decades until last year when I made an impromtu stop with my girls who had a blast swimming in the chilly waters.
#6- The scenery
The scenery was mentioned by many people in my questioning and I agree. Southwick is set in the lower Pioneer Valley and as such is verdant, green and blessed with many amazing views. We are at the foothills of the mountains and there are many wide open farm spaces with lovely vistas. We have gorgeous homes on tree lined streets and the lake area, too!
#7- The schools
Many respondents said that they love the family oriented nature of the town and the schools for their kids. It was at least a decade after my high school graduation before I realized how lucky I had been with such a wonderful and caring background in my education. One of my best friends from school is now a high school counselor and I am so glad that she is there to guide the next generation.
#8- Close but not too close
There is such a thing as being too far in the country for many homeowners. There are a lot of people (myself included) who crave some level of country feel and solitude, but don’t want to live away from conveniences that a larger city provides. Southwick is set in an ideal spot to solve that issue for most people. Westfield, Agawam and Springfield are very close with even bigger cities like Hartford and Boston being a reasonable driving distance.
#9- Pizza!
Yes, little did you outsiders realize that Southwick is the hot bed of a long-lived pizza war. Many of the participants change along the way, but the two main combatants are Roma Restaurant and Village Pizza. Shout out to me…which slice is the best? (I am a Roma girl, for the record).
#10- The People
I already mentioned this, but it bears repeating. I see lovely outpourings of support and love for fellow Southwick natives EVERY DAY on Facebook. We may not all live in Southwick, still, but it is still in our hearts and we still reach out to one another to share and assist. There is something wonderful about a small town that fosters this level of caring concern and I am glad to have been raised in Southwick, MA.
I created a set of photos that I have taken around Southwick.
Take a look at the beautiful scenes I have captured of Southwick, MA!
If you are looking to make a move in or to Southwick, MA, I would love to be your REALTOR.
Lesley Lambert, Park Square Realty 413-575-3611
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