KW Commercial/Magnusson Balfour recently honored colleague and broker Craig Church as a mentor and leader.
Church passed away last August and his loss “has been deeply felt throughout the commercial real estate industry, especially by KW Maine and the Magnusson Balfour Team, where he played a significant role,” according to a news release.
At the recent KW annual awards banquet, a new mentorship award was introduced in collaboration with the Magnusson Balfour Team and presented posthumously to Church. Moving forward, the honor will be known as the Craig Church Memorial Mentorship Award, recognizing the qualities Church embodied and the example he set for others in the industry.
Career path
Born and raised in Portland, Church later lived in South Portland. He worked alongside his father for many years at Lopez & Church in Portland, then went on to co-found Church Office Equipment with his wife Jewel in 1991.
Church Office Equipment became a leader in the Portland dictation equipment market for two decades, according to his obituary. He was a top distributor for companies, receiving numerous sales awards.
In 2007, the couple sold the company. After building a portfolio of commercial properties over his career and consulting with his wife, Church joined Magnusson Balfour in 2009, eventually becoming a partner.
As a broker, he specialized in commercial sales and leasing, business brokerage and buyer representation.
“Beyond serving his clients, Craig played a vital role in mentoring and supporting his fellow agents, always ready to lend his expertise and guidance,” his Magnusson Balfour bio says.
Showing up for others
“Today, we present the Mentorship Award in honor of someone who meant a great deal to our community — not just for what he accomplished, but for how he showed up for others every single day,” Dennis Wheelock, a partner with the firm, said in his remarks from the presentation.
“Craig was the kind of colleague who never treated mentorship as a task or a title,” Wheelock continued. “It was simply who he was. He listened when it would have been easier to move on. He made time when time was scarce. He saw potential in people before those people could always see it in themselves.”
He continued, “Many of us here can point to a moment — sometimes small, sometimes life-changing — when Craig offered guidance, encouragement or a quiet vote of confidence that made all the difference. He didn’t mentor for recognition. He mentored because he genuinely believed that helping others grow was part of his responsibility that gave him much joy.”