There are people who seem to be able to tap into deep reserves of energy when the rest of us are flagging. The more difficult the task, the more focused and determined they become. While the rest of us are huddled over yet another cup of coffee—and wishing for a nap--just to make it through the day, they’ve already moved on to their next project.
And yet somehow they’re never too busy. They remember birthdays, the details of your last conversation with them. They make you feel special.
Exactly how is this possible, the rest of us would like to know.
Haley Garcia is one of those people.
“As a child, my parents would laugh and were always shaking their heads,” says Haley, because she was always asking why, always working on a project, even from a young age. Her mom and dad taught her she had the power to choose how to process her thoughts, to be intentional about her actions and look for positive outcomes.
“Haley goes full-force into whatever she does,” says Cindy Higgins Perretti. She and Haley are close friends who’ve worked side-by-side on an array of boards and committees over the years.
“She cares about growing people and the community. It’s easy when you see someone who’s a success not to realize how they pour that success back into the people and things they care about. She constantly fertilizes and waters those gardens,” says Higgins Perretti.
From children’s initiatives to food pantries, from programs for the aged to non-profits that help homeless pets, Haley is spending the time and nurturing the facets of life that foster a deeply-rooted community.
The list of organizations is lengthy: Haley is the co-founder and a board member of Women of the Woodlands. She’s on the board of “Yes to Youth” Montgomery County youth services and New Danville, which provides services for special needs adults. She’s also a past board member of The Woodlands Area Economic Development Partnership. Even when her name is not present on a list of board members or activity chairs, odds are that if you take a closer look, you’ll find her behind the scenes, lending a hand in some way.
“One of the most unique attributes of Haley is her generous spirit,” says Dr. Ann Snyder, a member of the Board of Directors of The Woodlands Township and the former President and CEO of Interfaith of The Woodlands, who’s worked closely with Haley on many community initiatives over the years. “She has a goodness. She wants to make whatever project she’s working on achieve its very best. In the non-profit world, she’s always ready to help, to be a leader.”
Particularly close to Haley’s heart is The Woodlands Arts Council, where she’s a board member and serves as chair of the annual Waterway Arts Festival‘s immensely popular Art Dash party. This year’s Art Dash will be held April 8th at The Woodlands Waterway Marriott Hotel and Convention Center.
Snyder recalls how instrumental Haley was in the 2021 return of the arts festival after it was reluctantly cancelled in 2020 due to COVID. The Art Dash was an especially pivotal event that year, a celebration for art lovers from across the community, after having cordoned off their lives for so many months. “It was a huge success, and she executed with style and class,” says Snyder.
Coming Full Circle
Higgins Perretti remembers when Haley was just starting out professionally, making a name for herself in real estate. Now, more than two decades later, the Haley Garcia Group is the number one Compass Real Estate team in the Houston area, last year alone bringing 215 families to The Woodlands community. “When I see where she is today, I beam,” says Higgins Perretti.
Since 2016, Haley has been a Houston Business Journal Top 25 Agent, and her Haley Garcia Group has been an HBJ Top 25 Team in back-to-back years. She’s been featured in Top Agent magazine multiple times and even appeared in an episode of HGTV’s House Hunters series.
It was in the midst of her success as a realtor that she began to take stock. Was she making the most efficient use of her time and energy? Was she focusing on what counts? She says she began working with an executive coach, who helped her tap into the core of what was important to her and to prioritize.
The results were so meaningful, and the skill set such a match, that she dove right in, undertaking many hours of coursework to become a Master Certified Life Coach. “Coaching made so much sense,” says Higgins Perretti. “Haley has always been mentoring, always taking people under her wing.“
Haley says those coaching skills are a natural fit for helping a client buy or sell a home. “When someone is at a crucial point in their life, making one of the most important purchases they’ll ever make, a realtor is not just guiding a transaction, they’re guiding a client to reflect on what they value and where they want life to take them. It’s a profoundly personal decision.”
Real estate drives many aspects of our community, says Haley. The Woodlands area is in growth mode, yet at the same time, inflation is happening. “There’ve been major jumps in the real estate market. We’ve never had this kind of appreciation in my 22 years, and there’s concern that this might be a bubble. I don’t think so. Texas is catching up to the rest of the country,” she says. “We have a supply and demand issue, which is challenging.” She predicts we’ll see some balancing start to happen in the local market over the rest of 2022.
The people who never run out of energy and time? They’re the ones who take the trails and turns of life and use them to come full circle, to support the things they love the most. “The personality of The Woodlands lends itself to my personality!” says Haley. “The Waterway, hike-and-bike trails, yoga in our parks--all offer inspiration and rejuvenation wrapped in nature. There's no place like it to call home."
