Omar Richardson
Omar was born in 1952 at the railroad hospital in Salida, Colorado. The third of eight children (four boys and four girls), he was raised on the family’s 360-acre farm in Nathrop, with 320 acres of irrigated alfalfa hay, a few milk cows, a couple of beef cows, pigs, chickens, rabbits, a few horses, and lots of sheep! After moving to Cañon City, where he graduated from high school and was a member of the National Honor Society, he was involved in 4-H, contracted with the Dreher Pickle Company to raise cucumbers, and did custom tractor work. These endeavors generated the funds to buy his car and attend college in Gunnison, Colorado (now Western Colorado University).
In 1974, Omar graduated with a double major in Business and Economics and a double minor in Education and Psychology. He then earned a Master’s in Business in 1975 and married Anne Lampert in August of that year. Despite trying to avoid the family business of real estate brokerage—his dad and mom were both Colorado employing broker/owners, and a sister and brother were also real estate brokers—Omar became a broker in 1979 in Durango, Colorado. There, he was an instructor for Jones Real Estate College, President of the Board in 1982, REALTOR® of the Year in 1983, State Director in 1984, and a national instructor in 1987. He also held real estate licenses in New Mexico and Florida. With his son and daughter-in-law now also real estate brokers for more than 15 years, the family has accepted that real estate just might be a genetic defect that runs in the family! ?
Along the way, Omar obtained his private pilot’s license and, with a couple of climbing partners, climbed all of Colorado’s 14ers (54 mountains with elevations exceeding 14,000 feet above sea level), plus a few in California, Mount Rainier, and even the Grand Teton.
The mid-1970s were pivotal in Omar’s life, with marriage, starting a family, beginning a lifelong career in real estate, and, most importantly, surrendering his life to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Omar has embraced an anonymous saying often attributed to Theodore Roosevelt: “Nobody cares how much you know until they know how much you care.” This belief dovetails with his pursuit of living as a born-again Christian committed to putting the interests of others before his own. The Kingdom of God is focused more on relationships than performance, although being a highly skilled servant remains one of Omar’s core values.
Omar has been privileged to develop experience and expertise in almost every kind of real estate activity—from farm and ranch, mountain land, and recreational properties to construction and development, commercial, industrial, and, of course, residential real estate, including luxury homes. He even holds an inactive mortgage broker’s license and has been involved in buying, selling, and structuring owner-financing arrangements. He and his wife, Anne, along with many family members, enjoyed the experience of designing, building, operating, and eventually selling a bed and breakfast in Salida, Colorado. Their adventures have also included owning a ghost town (Turret) and owning and operating an RV campground.
Retirement? No way! Maybe a little more camping, fishing, hiking, and traveling—but Omar still loves helping people pursue their real estate dreams.