Barb Lamoureux
EVERETT — Barb Lamoureux, a local philanthropist and hometown real estate broker, is retiring from her day job.
Countless organizations, including Housing Hope, Christmas House, the YMCA, the Evergreen Arboretum and the Imagine Children’s Museum, received generous donations from her. She also sponsored numerous events with the Everett Silvertips and Everett High School.
“My father has taught me that if you have it, you should give it,” Lamoureux said.
Her father, Bob Long, Sr., owned Judd & Black Appliance in Everett from 1976 to 1987 and passed away in 2004, leaving a legacy of community involvement. Lamoureux worked with her father before venturing into what she found to be an unpredictable industry.
“I decided to get into real estate because I needed a job that I could make as much money as I wanted, and nobody could fire me,” Lamoureux said.
Friends Clay and Hap Wertheimer have enjoyed working with Lamoureux on various projects and events. They first met her through her charitable work over 30 years ago.
“She is sassy and savvy, with a big heart,” Clay Wertheimer said. “She kind of came from an age when women were supposed to be a certain way, and she didn’t fit that mold. She excelled in a man’s world in real estate.” The Wertheimers have continually been impressed with Lamoureux’s ability to reach the community she has served since she began in real estate in 1988.
“She enjoyed the challenge of being told ‘no’ so she could show them she could,” Hap Wertheimer said, calling Lamoureux an ageless spitfire that would make a great role model for girls.
Her son and former managing broker for her business, Chris Lamoureux, put it this way: “She would always say if she overspent on a cause, that she just needed to go out and sell another house. As successful as she has been in her career, I think the really important thing is her ability to give back.”
After working for Windermere, she founded her own Lamoureux Real Estate in 2004.
The same year, she partnered with the Everett Silvertips, a debuting Western Hockey League (WHL) team.
“We knew nothing about hockey, but we knew we wanted to be a part of the community,” Chris Lamoureux said. He recalled from a young age that his mother was always highly dedicated and motivated to work.
“She didn’t want to follow the herd, what other people in real estate were doing in the business,” Chris Lamoureux said. He helped his mother with the growing need for technology starting in 2000, which allowed her to focus on her clients and community involvement.
Lamoureux plans to exit in the next couple of months as she finishes with her clients.
Magnify Realty founder and broker John Weston will handle past and future clients of Lamoureux Real Estate.
Since moving into her office and speaking with past clients, Weston said it was always more than just about real estate to Lamoureux. “Real estate was the vehicle, but she has impacted the community in so many ways, and probably in some ways that people don’t even know about,” he said.
