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!

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!

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!

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!

Lieutenant Stallings-Acres is from Rocky Mount, NC.  She moved to Raleigh 14 years ago and began working as a Correctional Officer within the prison system. Three years ago, she came to work for York Security. She started as an on-call Security Officer, gradually working her way up to Sergeant, and then Lieutenant. She is now responsible for training all of our new field officers and tells us, believe it or not, it is sometimes easier to train someone with no security experience at all than someone coming to the company with a background in security.

Lieutenant Stallings-Acres says it is important to her to keep up a positive image and be a role model for the junior staff and officers.  She says she has benefited from lots of support from upper management and she wants to do the same for others. She tells people, “I have an open door policy. You can talk to me about anything.”

In her downtime, Lieutenant Stallings-Acres enjoys spending time with her family, shopping, and traveling.

We are so glad to have Lieutenant Stallings-Acres on our Team!

Thomas Hester is a bona fide Raleigh native. He is an App State graduate who joined the York brokerage team seven years ago after stints teaching high school civics in upstate France, working off-Broadway at Tweetsie Railroad, and walking the streets as an analyst for the Downtown Raleigh Alliance. Thomas specializes in retail properties and strategic redevelopment in Raleigh, the Triangle, and throughout the state.

You may spot Thomas and his wife, Caity, around town riding their bikes on the greenway, running with their two dogs in nearby Dix Park, or breaking it down at their favorite local concert venue.

Thomas says, “Working at York is truly a privilege. The depth of experience on our team is unmatched in the market. There’s no way to replicate the institutional knowledge that York has earned over the past century as the firm has helped to build Raleigh into what it is today. A wise broker once told me ‘the best fertilizer for a piece of property is the owner’s [agent’s] boot prints,’ and that full-service mentality is what drives me to do the extraordinary things that I do here at York Properties.”

We are so happy to have Thomas here!

Security Officer Agartha Owusu is originally from Ghana in West Africa and she has lived in North Carolina since 1994. She was in Connecticut for several years prior to NC, but says that she had to “run away” from the snow up there.  We are so glad she did!

Officer Owusu has three kids – the youngest is going off to college next year. She is someone who likes to work and is respectful of others. She enjoys smiling and believes that you always have to do your best. Officer Owusu tells us, “Always be on time. Always show up. Always set an example for others. Responsibility is the most important thing.” We know that she lives by this mantra because we see it in her work ethic and dedication to the company.

Officer Owusu says she appreciates how well-organized the York management team is and how much they respect their employees.

Thank you Officer Owusu for all you do!