Meet Our People

Marketing Specialist, Vicky Eaton, is a Raleigh native with a degree in Journalism & Mass Communication from North Carolina A&T State University.

After graduating from A&T, she spent the next year and a half as a Hostess/Server at the former 18 Seaboard on Peace Street. It was there, while waiting on a table for one of our employees, that Vicky was (unknowingly) earmarked as someone who had exactly the type of personality we were looking for to fill a position within our Marketing department.

As it turned out, she was interested in the opportunity and a few weeks later, she was onboarded as an assistant to our marketing team. Fast-forward 3 years and Vicky is now a Marketing Specialist supporting her own team of four commercial brokers in our office. She is a North Carolina Notary Public and is responsible for our internal company newsletter. Vicky is also a board member for the Hillsborough Street Community Service Corporation (HSCSC) and Concept Factory.

If you ask her, Vicky will tell you that her passion in life is media and story-telling. She is a photographer, videographer, and graphic designer. She volunteers her time doing videography for Victorious Praise Fellowship Church in Durham. Vicky loves her family – Mom and two brothers (one of them is her twin) – and spends as much time as she can traveling, visiting extended family and friends, shopping, and dining her way through the City of Oaks. As she likes to say, “Life is too short for bland food.”

When asked about her job, Vicky says, “In addition to the work-life balance and amazing, vibrant coworkers, my favorite part of the job is the creative problem-solving element. I enjoy seeing puzzle pieces become a work of art. I enjoy helping others bring things to life and it is a privilege to do so with such an amazing team of people surrounding me daily. My team of brokers bring a wealth of knowledge, experience, and connections to the table which makes supporting and learning from them all the more valuable and intriguing.”

Meet Our People

North Carolina native Julie Price is a staple here at York.  She was working in an Administrative Assistant role at Lyston Farmer & Associates when the firm was purchased by York in 2000.  Since that time, Julie has been a major part of York’s Association Management division, supporting the property managers with her full dedication.

Outside of the office, Julie loves to read and spend time with her children and husband.  She says she doesn’t like to cook; however, her youngest loves to cook with her and she really enjoys that.

She is a Board Member for her HOA and volunteers with the Durant Road Middle School PTA because she believes schools and parents should always work together in the best interest of children.

When asked about her work life Julie says, “My favorite part is talking to homeowners and helping them solve issues. Well…that and enjoying laughs with my cubicle mate, Beth. I love working for York. It really is like family here. I’ve always felt appreciated & needed. I just want to do the best job I can do and be the best person I can be.”

Thanks, Julie.  We love you too!

Meet Our People

Captain Eric Thompson is a North Carolina native and an indispensable part of our Security Team.  He is married with 4 children and 3 grandchildren – all of whom live nearby and visit often.

He is originally from Little Washington and entered the United States Army straight out of high school. There he spent the next 26 years of his life, eventually becoming a member of the 82 Airborne – an elite division that can rapidly deploy in just 18 hours’ notice.  Once out of the military, he completed a police training course, intending to work in the Washington, D.C., area.  Unfortunately, a hiring freeze put an unexpected halt to those pursuits. Instead, Captain Thompson moved back to North Carolina, landing a job managing a warehouse for a furniture company.  He spent several years in the furniture business, shipping and receiving products from High Point to all over the world.  He says that after 9/11, the furniture business began to decline and after seeing an ad for York Security, he made the call.

Captain Thompson started out with York in 2009, filling in for a few days as an on-call security officer.  Not long after, he was asked to step into a role as a nighttime Mobile Supervisor and he has been a full-time employee ever since.  He is one of only a few York officers who is PPSB Certified for both armed and unarmed security.

When asked about his daily routine, Captain Thompson says that, with the exception of working from 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM, there is no routine. Each day brings something new…alarm calls, break-ins, damage to property. A day that seems like it might be a slow one can turn hectic at the drop of a hat. With his straight-forward and calm demeanor, he doesn’t seem to mind. His favorite part of the job is interacting with our customers and the public.  He tells us that he is always striving to be better, each day. Words to live by!

Having someone as diligent and exceptionally qualified as Captain Thompson helping to lead our Security Team is a gift!  Many thanks to Captain Thompson for all that he does and for his years of loyal service.

Amy Rogers, Senior Property Manager, York Properties

Meet Our People

Property Manager Amy Rogers has been with the company going on 12 years. She is a North Carolina native, growing up in Robersonville and then moving to Raleigh to attend Peace College. After spending two years at Peace, she then transferred and graduated from NC State with a BS in Business Management with Concentration in Finance.

After graduation, Amy worked for eight years at Highwoods Properties. She resigned just after her twins, Tripp and Caroline (now 14 years old), were born. We asked her how it was that she ended up at York and she told us, “I ran into John Kerr one day when my kids were little and told him that I would eventually like to get back to work and to please keep me in mind if there was ever an opening at York. I got a call the following week and here I am! Wouldn’t change a thing!”

Here at the office, Amy manages a portfolio of some of our highest-profile clients and is loved and respected for her kind but firm approach to property management and her seemingly unflappable roll-with-the-punches attitude. Amy says her favorite things about the job are getting to work with many different people and that each day is unique. While that makes the work day more interesting, it can also make it challenging. In those challenging moments she proudly reports, “The people that I work with are always there to lift me up and support me!”

In her downtime she enjoys playing tennis, reading, and working in the yard. Her family also enjoys camping and hiking together.

When we asked about any words of wisdom she works and lives by, Amy told us she tries to do her best while knowing her limits and managing a good work-life balance. Reasonable expectations and boundaries are a key component of that.

We are thankful that Amy is part of our team and look forward to all she will accomplish in the future!

Meet Our People

Executive Assistant, Candi McDowell, is a North Carolina native – growing up in Madison and living here in Raleigh for the last 25 years. She went to school at UNC-Chapel Hill, received a degree in biology, and shortly after graduation (while trying to figure out what to do with her life) started temp work with our office.

Thankfully for us, she forgot to leave and so here we are 22 years later! Candi is an indispensable part of our leasing and property management teams.

Candi’s motto is, “Don’t put too many pots on the stove.” She believes in order to work and live efficiently, we need to do our best to stay on track, keep focused, and find a perfect balance.

When she’s not at work, you’re most likely to find Candi at a concert. She is passionate about live music and, along with her husband, attends about 50 concerts annually. She says that there is nothing that makes her smile bigger than hearing bands singing her favorite songs! For an escape from normal life, Candi chooses Asheville for its walkability, greenways, hiking trails, and all the delicious downtown eateries and breweries.

Candi loves supporting the SPCA of Wake County. All of her fur babies have come from there. She laughingly laments, however, that she cannot volunteer with the SPCA as it would be a major foster fail and she does not have room for the 25 cats she would adopt in her downtown condo. Candi is a volunteer with the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina, Backpack Buddies, and helps her mother build toiletry kits for unhoused folks.

Candi says her favorite thing about working at York is being able to help a client quickly by scanning a form they need or reviewing a particular lease clause for an owner. It is very satisfying to be able to assist in a snap!

We are so grateful that Candi chose to stay here at York with us!

Meet Our People

If we had one, Bloomsbury’s Production Manager, Willie Hunt, would be at the top of our leader board for Most Years of Service. With 40 years (and counting!) under his belt, the only person who can claim to have worked here any longer is our Chairman, Smedes. Willie proudly tells us he has worked for Mr. Willie York, Mr. Smedes York, and now Mr. George York.

Willie is a God-fearing man. He is an ordained minister and was a Deacon at Castalia Missionary Baptist Church where Reverend Victor Fenner now presides. He has been married for 32 years and has a daughter living in Raleigh with a grandbaby on the way.

He was born in Louisburg and ended up in Raleigh because his cousin, who lived in the area, secured him a job on the Bloomsbury team. As the years passed, Willie was promoted from Landscape Maintenance Tech to Supervisor, then Project Supervisor, Crew Leader, and now Production Manager. He spends most of his time out in the field making sure our crews have what they need, trouble-shooting, and helping out where he can. Willie says he enjoys the outdoors, meeting new clients, and pleasing our existing clients. He always tells his guys, “Your work is a reflection of you. Treat people the way you want to be treated, show respect and have a good attitude.”

Willie says he truly appreciates the employees that they have on the Bloomsbury crews right now. He says they are good people and they make good teams.

We are thankful to have Willie as part of the York family!

Three Cheers for Officer Banks

York Security’s Senior Officer Shawn Banks has been quietly supporting youth in the Raleigh area for years now, and he has no plans to slow down.  Officer Banks is the owner, head coach, marketing manager, procurer of funding, emergency transportation provider, team psychologist, and more, for a youth basketball program called Team Raleigh.

The program is a registered member of the AAU Basketball League (one of the largest, non-profit, volunteer, sports organizations in the US).  It provides a space for youth to play basketball in the off-season, continue to develop their skills, and even compete in high-profile tournaments.  You can hear the pride in Shawn’s voice when he talks about “his kids,” rattling off names of youth who have moved through his program and on to college teams.  He says that recruiting isn’t too difficult, as he uses word-of-mouth and seeks referrals from existing players to fill spaces when the older kids move on.  He holds try-outs just like any other sports program would, and when their season is in swing he schedules practices twice a week to help them get ready for tournaments.  Last year, his teams played in 17 tournaments!

   

In addition to devoting a great deal of his time to this program, Officer Banks invests a lot of his own money as well.  Just like other AAU teams there is a fee to join. Shawn makes it clear, however, that he doesn’t want cost to prevent an interested youth from participating. Instead of requiring a lump-sum payment up front he actively works with families on monthly payment schedules. And he tells us that he purposefully ensures that his team’s fees are lower than most other AAU teams.  So far he has been able to supplement player’s fees with private donations, most of which come from family members of the team.  Recently however he has begun working on creating sponsorship opportunities for companies in an effort to help cover costs for things like practice facilities, jerseys, and traveling to tournaments.

We are incredibly proud of Officer Banks and his involvement in our community!

Meet Our People

Accounting Manager, Ryan Beacham, joined York Properties in 2015 and has been busy ever since building tools to help create efficiencies, managing a team of accountants, and keeping a whole list of properties going strong. He is a University of Maryland alumni, having graduated with a degree in accounting and business administration.

Ryan’s family is originally from the Triangle, but he has spent most of his life in the DC/Baltimore metro area. He moved down to Harnett County eight years ago because he really loved the area and wasn’t much of a big city person.

When he’s not in the office Ryan enjoys camping, shooting, yard work, and anything that gets him outdoors. He also volunteers his time handling finance work for his church, Buies Creek First Baptist.

Ryan believes in putting everything you’ve got into whatever you do. Do it right, or don’t do it at all. He says he enjoys working with York because of the people. “We have a phenomenal team of really great people. I’ve had the pleasure to work with some outstanding clients, as well, that I’ve really built solid relationships with over the years.”

We are fortunate to have him on our team!

Meet Our People

Skipper Day is a Raleigh native – born in the old Rex Hospital at Wade Ave and St. Mary’s Street. He has been with the York brokerage team since 2012 and has over 37 years of commercial real estate consulting experience. Prior to joining the company, Skipper was with Cushman & Wakefield. He received the REDY Award in 1998 for the top office deal in the Triangle (124,000 SF) and received the REDY award in 2000 for the second top office deal (113,000 SF). Skipper enjoys assisting both entrepreneurial clients who may be just starting their business as well as established corporate clients.

In his downtime, you can find Skipper on the golf course, enjoying time on the lake with family, or doing volunteer projects with one of the several organizations he is involved with. A few of these include Hayes Barton Baptist Church, First Tee – Triangle, and NC State Alumni Association. His wife, Barbara, is an NCSU engineering graduate and was a cheerleader when State won the ’84 NCAA basketball championship. Their two sons, Chad and Wilson, both attended NCSU and were members of the men’s golf team. We are pretty sure that family’s blood runs red AND white.

When asked about his job, Skipper says:

My time at York has come full circle. When I was about to graduate from college and starting to explore the commercial real estate field, I had a meeting with Smedes and his father in “the cave” (for non-York employees, “the cave” is our affectionate name for the old office that used to be where the Village District Rite Aid currently resides). I was a nervous 21-year-old sitting across the table from these two accomplished gentlemen. Things did not initially work out and there is usually a reason when that happens. I feel very blessed that the opportunity opened up in 2012 to join the York team.

Coming from a corporate real estate firm to a local family-owned firm has been very refreshing. The opportunity to interact with all the York employees through the various company functions and the volunteer services within the community that York is involved with has been great. The depth of experience and knowledge amongst our brokerage team is hard to come by.

We are so happy to have Skipper on our team!

Meet Our People

Alison Lipschitz is from Long Island, NY, and grew up in Massapequa. Because of relatives already living in North Carolina, when her own family was looking to move, NC was their first choice. She says that they chose Wake County specifically because of the great schools.

Alison has been married for 23 years and has 2 kids – one at Syracuse University obtaining her master’s degree and one attending Appalachian State University. She joined York as an Association Manager in 2021 and manages a portfolio of condominium, townhome, and single-family homeowners’ associations throughout the Triangle. She is working on getting her Professional Community Association Manager (PCAM) designation – the highest professional recognition available nationwide to managers who specialize in community association management.

Alison got into the HOA business by accident, but she says it was a good fit because she truly enjoys helping people and solving problems. It is never dull and there is always something new to learn. She says she “enjoys working at York because of (her) coworkers. They are all just amazing and always ready to pitch in and help out.”

Thank you Alison for all your hard work!