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Realtors® care about the community in which they live and work. They fight for affordable homeownership opportunities, take pride in giving back to the community through volunteer work, and recognize those citizens whose extraordinary contributions have enriched our area.
2008 Portland First Citizen
Joe Weston, Weston Investment Co., LLC
Download a registration form for the 2008 Portland First Citizen Banquet.
The Portland Metropolitan Association of Realtors® (PMAR) is pleased to announce Joseph Weston, Weston Investment Co., LLC., as the recipient of the 2008 Portland First Citizen Award. Weston will be recognized for his civic achievements and leadership at the 80th annual Portland First Citizen Banquet, scheduled for April 30, 2008 at the Governor Hotel, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
The Portland First Citizen Award was created in 1928 by the Portland Realty Board (now PMAR). Considered one of Portland’s most prestigious awards, the individuals who have received it form an honor roll of the city’s most prominent leaders during the last eight decades.
Joe Weston’s contributions to the community are extensive. His foundation, The OCF Joseph E. Weston Public Foundation, is one of the largest foundations in the state, and has a current asset value of $102 million. Administered by the Oregon Community Foundation, Weston’s foundation provides grants to organizations that benefit children, the working poor, the physically and/or mentally challenged, senior citizens, and the homeless. Every December, Weston donates a piece of property to the Foundation, most recently, the Commonwealth Building and the Stevens Building. In 2007, the Foundation awarded over $2.3 million to schools and non-profits. In 2006, the Foundation donated $1.39 million to New Avenues for Youth, OASIS Senior Center, Saturday Academy, Sisters of the Road Café, and Special Olympics of Oregon, to name a few. An active community member, Weston has served food weekly at the St. Francis Dining Hall for 19 years. In 2004, he received the Vollum Award for Lifetime Philanthropic Achievement.
Weston’s roots are in the real estate community. He is well known as the founder and instructor at the Portland Real Estate School, which he started in 1959. In 1980, Weston served as President of the Portland Board of Realtors®, and in 1977, he received their Realtor® of the Year Award.
Through Weston Investments, Weston owns 2,500 apartments, as well as 4.6 million square feet of office, industrial, warehouse and retail space, and self-storage facilities in Oregon and Washington. He remains the controlling interest behind Hoyt Street Properties, which is the major developer of the Pearl District. His rentals, managed by American Property Management, remain one of the inner east side’s largest supply of affordable apartments.
The Portland First Citizen banquet sponsors include The Oregonian, the Regional Multiple Listing Service (RMLS™), the Oregon Association of Realtors® (OAR), the law firm of Davis Wright Tremaine, and the PMAR Million Dollar Club. Advance registration for the event is required. For tickets or event information, call PMAR at 503-459-2152.
In addition to the Portland First Citizen Award, two other awards will be presented at the banquet. The Portland Future First Citizen Award recognizes a high school student in the Portland metropolitan area who is a model of civic responsibility. The PMAR Good Neighbor Award will be awarded to a Realtor® member who has demonstrated an extraordinary commitment to improving the quality of life in his community.
Past Portland First Citizens
| 1928 | Ben Selling | 1967 | John M. Fulton |
| 1929 | J. C. Ainsworth | 1968 | John D. Gray |
| 1930 | Aaron M. Frank | 1969 | Homer T. Shaver |
| 1931 | Henry B. Van Duzer | 1970 | Judge Gus J. Solomon |
| 1932 | Raymond B. Wilcox | 1971 | Glenn Jackson |
| 1933 | George L. Baker | 1972 | Ira C. Keller |
| 1934 | Hopkin Jenkins | 1973 | Howard Vollum |
| 1935 | Edward C. Sammons | 1974 | William E. Roberts |
| 1936 | Arthur L. Fields | 1975 | Fred G. Meyer |
| 1937 | Richard B. Dillehunt, M.D. | 1976 | Larry Hilaire |
| 1938 | Franklin T. Griffith | 1977 | Louis B. Perry |
| 1939 | Charles H. Martin | 1978 | Edith Green |
| 1940 | Ross McIntyre | 1979 | David Edwin Abram |
| 1941 | Mrs. Thomas D. Honeyman | 1980 | William Swindells, Sr. |
| 1942 | Edgar F. Kaiser | 1981 | Judge Harlow F. Lenon |
| 1943 | Portland Service Men/Women | 1982 | Samuel T. Naito & William S. Naito |
| 1944 | Mrs. C.S. Jackson | 1983 | Carl M. Halvorson |
| 1945 | Theodore R. Gamble | 1984 | Bishop Paul D. Waldschmidt |
| 1946 | Chester A. Moores | 1985 | John Piacentini |
| 1947 | Sid Woodbury | 1986 | Dr. Albert Starr |
| 1948 | Hillman Lueddemann | 1987 | Robert L. Ridgley |
| 1949 | Thomas Harry Banfield | 1988 | Don C. Frisbee |
| 1950 | David B. Simpson | 1989 | Melvin 'Pete' Mark |
| 1951 | Frank Erwin McCaslin | 1990 | Harry L. Demorest |
| 1952 | Edgar William Smith | 1991 | Dr. Matthew W. Prophet, Jr. |
| 1953 | C.B. Stephenson | 1992 | Harry Glickman |
| 1954 | Ben H. Hazen | 1993 | John 'Jack' Faust |
| 1955 | Dr. Morgan S. Odell | 1994 | Maestro Jacob Avshalomov |
| 1956 | Harold Fox Wendell | 1995 | Harold & Arlene Schnitzer |
| 1957 | Rt. Rev. Benjamin Dagwell | 1996 | Fred A. Stickel |
| 1958 | William Bruce Boone | 1997 | Neil Goldschmidt |
| 1959 | Paul Boole McKee | 1998 | Brian & Gwyneth Booth |
| 1960 | Dr. Leo Sherman Lucas | 1999 | Dr. Robert B. Pamplin, Jr. |
| 1961 | Dr. Samuel Latta Diack | 2000 | Peter E. Jacobsen |
| 1962 | Truman Wesley Collins | 2002 | Senator Mark O. Hatfield |
| 1963 | Judge Donald E. Long | 2003 | Tony L. Hopson, Sr. |
| 1964 | Charles R. Holloway, Jr. | 2004 | Dan Wieden |
| 1965 | Aubrey R. Watzek | 2005 | Gert Boyle |
| 1966 | Mrs. S. Mason Ehrman | 2006 | Jack McGowan |
| 2007 | Peggy Fowler |
Portland Metropolitan Association of Realtors®
5331 SW Macadam Avenue, Suite 207 | Portland, Oregon 97239 | P: 503-228-6595 F: 503-228-4170
