For release:
August 15, 2024

Three California REALTORS^® receive C.A.R.’s Champions of Home Impact Award

LOS ANGELES (Aug. 15) – The CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS^® (C.A.R.) today announced one winner and two honorees for its inaugural Champions of Home Impact Awards. These awards recognize California REALTORS^® who have made a significant impact on their communities through volunteer efforts. Winner Kay Wilson-Bolton and two honorees, Elizabeth Uribe and Mary Jane Cambria, will be recognized at C.A.R.’s annual REimagine! Conference & Expo in Long Beach, Calif., on Sept. 25.

“The extraordinary efforts and unwavering compassion demonstrated by Kay, Elizabeth, and Mary Jane have profoundly impacted their communities," said C.A.R. President Melanie Barker. “Their dedication to helping others sets a remarkable example. It is with great pride that I recognize them as our inaugural Champions of Home Impact Award recipients, honoring their outstanding contributions that transform and influence the lives of so many.”

This year’s winner, Kay Wilson-Bolton has been the acting director of the homelessness services organization Spirit of Santa Paula for 15 years and currently serves as its CFO. She first began working to alleviate homelessness in her community in 2008, when she discovered that a homeless man had died in a local church on Christmas Eve. She and a few volunteers started a hot meal program that grew to 600 meals per week. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the organization started a mega-food pantry, serving thousands of people each month. Wilson-Bolton worked tirelessly to develop partners and funding for a family shelter, case management, food rescue, and food pantry programs. A contract with Cal Recycle brought in a grant that funded the purchase of two refrigerator trucks, and the organization now rescues 2 million pounds of food a year. Under Wilson-Bolton’s guidance, the state of California awarded the organization a $1.5 million grant to build a new wing on the shelter to accommodate offices, classrooms, case management, additional bathrooms and showers. Spirit of Santa Paula will receive a $5,000 donation thanks to Wilson-Bolton’s work.

Two honorees will also be recognized for their community contributions, and the non-profit organizations they serve will each receive a $1,000 donation. Elizabeth K. Uribe is a board member with The Living Room, a transitional housing and care center for women and children in Sonoma County that provides counseling, meals and other services to more than 100 women each week. For more than 12 years, Uribe has helped The Living Room raise more than $870,000, obtained permits and overseen renovations enabling the organization to expand from housing six women to 34 women and their children, today.

Mary Jane Cambria, president of the board and founding member of the housing counseling agency Homeownership OC, has volunteered hundreds of hours for over 20 years at foreclosure prevention workshops, homebuyer education seminars, and real estate scam educational workshops. She has helped clients of the organization resolve housing issues and unraveled complicated real estate scams, aiding thousands of people to stay in their homes.

For more information about the Champions of Home Impact Awards, visit on.car.org/awards

Leading the way…® in California real estate for more than 119 years, the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS^® (www.car.org) is one of the largest state trade organizations in the United States with nearly 200,000 members dedicated to the advancement of professionalism in real estate. C.A.R. is headquartered in Los Angeles.