Wildlife Artists Find Their Calling in Jackson Hole

Some of the nations most celebrated sculptors, photographers and painters discovered their inner artist and adventurous spirit in Jackson Hole.

The Egg Out West: Introducing Meagan Murtagh

An urge to share what strikes her with others led Sales Associate Meagan Murtagh to find her calling in a variety of creative and professional endeavors in Jackson Hole.

Jackson Hole Cuisine Reaches for New Heights

There’s something about the altitude; the invigoration that each new day brings: it inspires soaring ambitions and the desire to create—and nurture—excellence.

Get Your Gear On: Choosing the Right Set-Up for Jackson Hole

Jackson Hole is starting the New Year the way we like best: blanketed in 264 inches of fresh snow (and counting).

The Refuge at Alpine Airpark Brings Community to Flying Aficionados

Imagine getting into the cockpit of a plane as naturally as you might decide to go out for a hike or swing by your favorite cafe for a latte.

Autumn in Jackson Hole: Make the Most of the Valley’s “Secret Season”

Sandwiched between the ascents and river trips of summer and the thrillingly snowy descents of the winter, fall is a bit of a secret season…

A Creative Frame of Mind

There’s a simple truth to Rocky Vertone’s line of work: Everything looks better in a frame.

Studio Spotlight: METAL

The duo behind METAL are versatile artists, problem solvers, community collaborators, and, above all, metal virtuosos.

Spring Fever

Spring, in Jackson Hole, is more of a date stamp than a weather shift. As soon as the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort closes—signaling the end of lift-induced skiing—spring sets in and local families bid farewell to winter by jetting to the desert or coast for sunny Spring Breaks.

Despite the exodus, spring remains a vital time in the valley as businesses ready for the deluge of summer and locals regroup after the bustle of winter. Even recreational opportunities remain, despite the snow-to-mud transition happening on trails. Just like any other time of the year, Jackson Hole plays host to a series of public events in the spring and early summer. Let TCCG guide your off-season fun:

PLAY IN THE PARK

In April, the Teton Park Road opens to non-vehicular traffic only, meaning bikers and pedestrians can claim the whole stretch of pavement from the Bradley-Taggart Trailhead to Signal Mountain Lodge, sans cars. As further incentive to get out and explore the early season, rangers waive the park fee during National Park Week, April 16 – 24, leaving no excuse not to flock to the park (as all locals do on sunny weekends).

Grand Teton Hiking

ECO EXTRAVANGZA

As the spring kick-off to outdoor entertainment, the EcoFair feels as much like a community celebration as it does an environmental showcase. For one day only (May 14), live music, local food, kids’ activities and educational demos transform the Snow King Ball Field into a carnival of mindful fun.

Jackson Hole Eco Fair

TOAST TROUT

All anglers in the valley come together in support of coldwater fisheries for Trout Unlimited’s Tie-One-On Banquet, hosted by the local and state chapters of the fisheries advocacy group. Held at Hotel Terra, the evening features raffles and live and silent auctions. The banquet benefits Teton waterways.

Hoback Canyon FlyFishing

COLLECT SHEDS

Every spring, the Jackson District Boy Scouts are given exclusive access to harvest the antlers shed on the National Elk Refuge, a bone bounty then sold at auction on May 21 on the Town Square as part of Elk Fest. Last year, 10,609 lbs. of antlers were sold at auction, with bidders paying a record-setting average of $17.03 per pound. Beyond bidding, Elk Fest hosts a High Noon Chili Cook-Off on May 22 and the Mountain Man Rendezvous, a tribute to frontier life.

Elk Antlers National Elk Refuge

NAMASTE

For the first time ever, the US Yoga Federation is hosting the 2016 Yoga Asana National Championship from May 20 – 22 at the Center for the Arts in Jackson. The three-day event finds athletes from across the country competing in the sport they are championing in their respective communities. Beyond competition, the championship features exhibitors, demos and yoga classes—open to all ticketholders.

Jenny Lake Yoga

GO WILD (WEST)

For 35 years running, the Jackson Hole Chamber of Commerce spotlights Jackson Hole’s boisterous cowboy history through Old West Days, May 27-30. With rodeo events, a downtown parade, wine and beer tastings, a traders’ row and even cowboy church on Sunday, the gathering promises good old fashioned fun.

Jackson Hole Rodeo

FEATHERED FESTIVITIES

On Father’s Day (June 19), the Teton Raptor Center hosts a community open house in the historic Hardeman Barns, a fun-for-all afternoon replete with live music, kids’ activities and demos with the center’s feathered residents (including Owly, the Great Horned Owl and Gus the Golden Eagle).

Teton Raptor Center

FOUR-LEGGED FÊTE

A red carpet marks the entrance to PAWS of Jackson Hole’s Tuxes & Tales Gala, staged on the Center for the Arts lawn. Gala-goers are invited to bring their furry friends with them as they walk the red carpet to the flashes of the puparazzi. In spirit and tone, the fundraiser toasts the joy of pets and the pet programs PAWS provides like the Mutt Mitt stations and new dog park.

Tuxes & Tails, Paws Jackson Hole

Service In Place

Somewhere in the annals of Jackson Hole Real Estate is a 17 year old Janet Helm’s travel journal. There between sanguine chronicles of family road trips and first hand accounts of adventures in a small Wyoming resort town, positioned adjacent pencil sketches of the Teton range are the words “I’m going to live here someday.”

For each of us there is a calling. Some find it in the resolve of vocation, others discover it in the trials of experience.
Janet Helm has found her own calling in place. To understand The Clear Creek Group is to understand its team. Small, deliberately individual, motivated by an unwavering passion for setting and the relationships forged in the ethos of small town Jackson Hole.

These relationships are personal.

A lifetime ago, Janet left the concrete skyscrapers of corporate America for the granite skyscrapers of Jackson Hole. Relentlessly altruistic, kids in tow, Janet set her bearings on working with people. Whether it be embodying the collaborative lifestyle afforded by Wyoming recreation, or volunteering in schools and local nonprofits, Janet has established a reputation as a purveyor of community.

In many respects it is this trait that makes Janet Helm an exceptional Associate Broker and an irreplaceable member of
The Clear Creek Group Real Estate team.

In her own words: “When the trails feel right under foot, and when the sun reflects the shadows just so on the water you cannot help but smile, you want to share the feeling, and share this special place.”

For Janet its never been about selling properties, its about a passion for community reflected in that travel journal all those years ago.


Janet Helm Associate BrokerWhat is it that brought you to Jackson Hole?

My husband Bill and I left corporate jobs for mountain living. I like to say I left concrete skyscrapers for granite ones. We did not look far… I had vacationed here with my family, and when I was 17 wrote in my travel journal I would live here someday. Jackson Hole reminded my husband of the valley he lived in in Switzerland for 14 years and when he called me from the top of Togwotee Pass that August day in 1992, he said ‘I’m home”. I flew out from Milwaukee to meet him here that Labor Day weekend. He settled in, and I moved the following July after our wedding.

It is a competitive market, what influenced your career in Real Estate?

Bill got his real estate license before I came out, and I was undecided what new profession I wanted to pursue, so attended real estate classes as well. The day I received word I passed the licensing exam (those days, results were mailed a week or two after taking the exam), I also found out I was pregnant. I have a son and daughter born less than two years apart. A career in real estate gave us the flexibility to trade off being with clients or being with kids. It also gave me the flexibility to volunteer in schools and for local nonprofits. I was able to pair real estate sales with working at a local art gallery and later a large retail store on the Square. Admittedly, the chosen real estate profession also gave me the ability to hit the trails several times a week, in the early days with kids in tow. Downhill or nordic skiing in the winter and hiking in the summer continue to be my passions.

What inspires you about your role at TCCG?

What inspires me at TCCG is the team – everyone here works hard, and plays hard. Weekends will find any number of us in the office, yet morning conversation is always about adventures played on days off. There is great respect for employees’ professional and private lives here. Secondly, everyone’s focus is relationship building whether with guests, homeowners, and/or brokerage clients. The theme throughout our company is high touch, high quality. We review our customers experience weekly and assess ways to improve it or transfer what was successful into other divisions of the company. We are always looking for new systems, new ways to improvise, new ideas, and that sparks my motivation – it is a great spiral.

Jackson Hole is not a hard sell, and it is always refreshing and inspiring to share the visitors’ awe, and then to help them become guests or clients…and friendships develop.

TCCG’s unique business model is one main reason I chose to work here: guests become buyers who often become rental and caretaking clients, and then sometimes sellers. As the company grows, our referral business grows. My role also expanded as the business has grown. I came in as a Brokerage Assistant to help organize and grow the real estate division, and now I am also Broker’s Assistant helping with brokerage management, and I am a licensed Associate Broker which puts me in the seller/buyer’s agent role. I get to use my research, management, and sales skills daily. No day is alike and after over four years here, I still look forward to walking in the office, sharing a few laughs, and massaging my goals to perform where they are most needed that day.

You have been described as a constant, the glue, someone to rely on. How would you describe your role at TCCG?

Janet Helm Jackson Hole CampingGosh…I owe someone lunch! I don’t know about being the glue, but I do have longevity in the valley that offers me perspective in the community, and in real estate specifically, that may translate into better understanding of our roles within. My Master’s degree in organizational communication pairs with my business background in sales and management which helps give me an objective view of how we operate internally and with the public. I am happy to be a resource internally, whether to brainstorm in a meeting, or make a suggestion as to who to contact or where to look for answers to questions. I think being a mother also gives me a sensitivity to my co-workers’ personal lives and balancing on the precious work/play life swing.

You have been and remain so active in the Jackson Hole community. How do you devote your free time?

Janet Helm Jackson Hole NordicI pride myself on maintaining relationships personally and professionally. My husband is a huge support – the evolving parenting roles as my children grow into young adults is amazing. We are empty nesters so ‘dating’ again – it’s a blast. My extended family is very close and even though we live all over the globe, I make it a goal to visit. And, there are my girlfriends who are my partners in motherhood, hiking, skiing, traveling, book club, professional pursuits, and so much more. I love to travel and am seldom home from one trip before planning another – sometimes just a weekend away. In between, it is all about being outside on the trails. I work hard to be able to do what I love. This matches well with the work hard/play hard/grow relationships theme at TCCG.

How do you think your role at TCCG extends to an active role in the community?

Our real estate team is unique because we are collaborative, not competitive, both within the office and with our peers. Our target market is selling residential properties east of the Tetons priced over $1 million although we have sold properties out of this area under $300,000, and a ranch for over $10 million. Our due diligence for high end buyers is extremely detailed oriented.  For example, while most buyers will hire a single general inspector, we encourage our buyers to hire not only a general inspector, but other contractors such as an electrician, a plumber, a HVAC specialist, a roofer, for the most thorough inspections of the investment they are going to make. Our Operations Manager will typically meet the inspectors at the property and see first-hand any issues that may be noted. He can then answer any questions and communicate with our input, to the buyer. Most of our buyers will entrust their home with our caretaking team after purchase because our team already knows the ‘mechanics’ of the house, and because the buyer has established a relationship with our operations staff.

We also want our clients to become part of the community, even if, (perhaps especially if), they are part time residents.

To that end, we introduce them to others. We host cocktail parties periodically for our clients, homeowners, and guests. We suggest contacting the Community Foundation of Jackson Hole to discover nonprofits they may wish to become involved with, offer locals’ insight to favorite spots and events, make introductions to new neighbors…Here is our common theme again: ‘relationship building’.

How has the field of Real Estate evolved? 

Technology has changed the field of real estate dramatically since I first got licensed. MLS books were printed monthly, so updates to listings were anything but current. Agents did not share the books with clients, let alone the general public, so we could be in control of listings presented. Now clients do their own searches and will ask about listings they uncovered online. Science has aided us in speed and many channels to communicate with customers. But in any product sale, once contact is made, it is all about ‘touch’ to establish the relationship. For residential sales, I like to believe real estate is more of an art form because the beauty of a property is in the eye of the beholder and it is up to the Realtor to help the seller present it, and the buyer ‘interpret’ it. Technology may help here, but while videos can show the wonders of properties, they cannot replace the feelings of walking onto a property that says ‘home’ through all five senses. Of course, Jackson Hole sells itself – when the trails feel right under foot/ski/board/bike tire, and when the sun reflects the shadows just so on the water/canyons/Aspens that you cannot help but smile, you want to share the feeling, and share this special place.

What is the single most important thing you want each of your clients to know, feel, or experience after working with you & The Clear Creek Group?

With gratitude we got to know you and help you find a piece of peace, and although the transaction is over, our relationship continues.