2010 Celebrate the Stars Award Winners

Verna Cameron - L/T Services - Member since 1985
RHA’s Lifetime Achievement Award is for those who for decades have gone above and beyond the call of duty for the rental housing industry. Verna Cameron, owner of L/T Services has earned our Lifetime Achievement Award for her 27 years of teaching our members how to do their jobs correctly.
Verna began L/T Services in 1982 and has since established herself as leader in the industry. L/T Services concentrates solely on handling evictions and tenant related problems to ensure their expertise offers the best services possible. The organization has 12 employees and is located in SeaTac. L/T Services has handled over 74,000 evictions since 1982.
Verna Cameron, also known as the “Lady in the Hat”, has donated countless hours to RHA educating our members on how to properly serve notices, about the eviction process and how to hopefully avoid one in the future. She teaches seminars for RHA members and was a highlighted speaker at RHA’s Spring Workshop. Anyone who attends her classes is guaranteed to walk away as a better rental property owner. Verna loves teaching and is willing to counsel anyone through the eviction process. She’s been a lifelong supporter of RHA and TRENDS.

Todd Hull - Member since 1997
Banner Bank is proud to provide the most comprehensive financial services to our Pacific Northwest customers. Banner has a rich history and strong culture. They are a community bank, so they understand what it means to provide friends and neighbors with excellent financial products.
Todd Hull is Assistant Vice President and Income Property Specialist for Banner Bank. He has more than 19 years of banking/lending experience and joined Banner in 2003 to open the Washington State Metro Income Property Division. Todd uses his extensive banking and lending knowledge to assist his clientele with all of their commercial real estate lending needs. His primary focus has been multi-family, mobile home park and commercial real estate lending. Todd values long-term client relationships, as evidenced by his repeat business from satisfied customers and their referrals.
Todd Hull joined RHA in 1997 and it has been a mutually beneficial situation from the beginning. It has allowed Todd and the bank the opportunity to offer their financial services directly to apartment/rental owners. Since joining RHA, Todd has acquired new customers through Association meetings and events and he has been able to assist many of them with loans and other banking needs. Todd had an opportunity to give back to the Association through his role as Chair of the Associates Committee. Todd Hull has been an instrumental part of RHA.

ServPro of Central/Northeast Seattle & Federal Way - Member since 2009
Shelley Butler represented Servpro of Central & Northeast Seattle and Federal Way, which provides a variety of services that can be invaluable to rental property owners and managers.
Their core services include water damage mitigation, remediation and restoration services. Fire, smoke and soot damage cleaning—which includes everything from a simple protein fire from someone forgetting a pot of food on the stove—to furnace puff-backs, residential fires, and multi-unit condo and apartment fires. They provide expert help to reduce tenant/resident interruption and recovery costs. Their team of 33 professionals are genuinely interested in each of their customers.
Although Servpro has been a RHA member for only two years, they have made a huge impact in that time. From sponsoring events to teaching classes, as they have become more involved, the benefits of and to RHA membership have grown exponentially. Servpro sponsored RHA’s Legislative Day, which was a real success, and participated in the Spring Workshop, and Annual Gathering.
In 2011, Servpro will be teaching two lunch ’n’ learns about the new EPA Lead-Rules legislation in effect so property owners can learn what is expected protocol for any pre-1978 homes or apartments they might own. They are also sponsoring an RHA membership meeting in May, in their NEW OFFICE in Lake City.

Earl Ecklund - Member since 1958
Earl Ecklund is the owner of the beautiful Lockhaven and Sunset Plaza Apartments in the Ballard neighborhood of Seattle. Earl is a member of RHA’s Board of Directors and has been a member of RHA since 1999, with his family belonging since 1958.
Earl, a retired Computer Scientist, provides clean and attractive living spaces for his tenants. Lockhaven is a beautiful property! He and his management team have implemented many "Green" alternatives such as: replacing all the toilets, shower heads and aerators with low flow models through the Seattle Public Utilities rebate program, making available for all tenants compact fluorescent bulbs and participating in the multi-family composting pilot program. Lockhaven also has recycling, composting and yard waste at every garbage area for ease and convenience. They have a clothing donation bin onsite as well as a moving boxes re-use program. Lockhaven also offers a resident gardening program providing tenants with extra incentive to "grow roots" in their community.
Providing a clean, attractive community for tenants, and receiving positive feedback when they enjoy living there is how Earl defines success. Over the years, Earl has valued his RHA membership. He values the role of RHA as a spokesman for the rental housing industry, including lobbying and the PAC.

Ed Bartley - Member since 2005 

Ed Bartley has been volunteering and helping us at the RHA for over 11 years. Ed takes most of the pictures you see in UPDATE, helps with the planning and proofing of the publication and with the Website committee. Ed said he enjoys volunteering for RHA because it provides support to such an important part of society and because the members and staff are just a great group of people. Ed especially likes attending and participating in the Legislative Day where you can really see the difference we make.
Serving and Supporting others is not new to Ed. In the past he worked for over 10 years for the Spokane police department and only left them when he had a stroke. He also helped develop the Yakima 911 system, where he worked for 5+ years, as well as working as a substitute teacher for Yakima for over 5 years.
When asked what he is most grateful for Ed didn’t hesitate for a moment, he stated it was his wife, Alice. In addition to his wife, he is very proud of his children. Charles works as a network architect for Boeing, and Ed’s daughter, Teresa is a master artist who makes pottery.
Ed would like to pursue his passion for sailing. His dream goal is to sail a 28 – 30 foot sailboat through the San Juan Islands. Ed is also working on video recording of his Dad’s old pictures, a book of Alice’s genealogy dating back to 460 AD, and cataloging over one million photos, which he has taken over the year.

Pierce County Housing Authority's Ready to Rent Program

The Pierce County Housing Authority, represented by Crystal Sams, is a public body, created by Pierce County in 1978 pursuant to State statute to provide affordable housing for low-income families in Pierce County. Many landlords work with them housing Section 8 voucher tenants.
The Pierce County Housing Authority’s Ready to Rent program is a 20 hour renter education class. The classes are free and are open to anyone who wants help identifying and overcoming screening and/or rental barriers. Of the 83 students who have registered for the past nine sessions, there have been 56 graduates. These graduates know their tenant responsibilities under the law and they understand the importance of being a good renter.
Though Pierce County Housing Authority holds the classes, they also partner with other organizations to provide tenants with best practice information. The Rental Housing Association is one of them. RHA President Julie Johnson attends one class each session to provide information about the landlord’s perspective.
The Ready to Rent program teaches participants how to: accept responsibility for past rental issues, repair credit, create a workable budget, prioritize housing needs, develop a housing search plan, understand the application and rental process, maintain appropriate housekeeping and how to communicate effectively with landlords. The Pierce County Housing Authority’s Ready to Rent program not only benefits the tenant, but also the rental housing industry and the community at large.