Suffolk News-Herald

Re/Max AcrossTown Inc. is independently owned and operated by the family of the late Harry L. Cross Jr. who first established &uot;Harry L. Cross Real Estate Co.,&uot; 50 years ago in a little storefront on South Main Street. Reputedly; the agency sells more properties than any other real estate firm in Suffolk.

&uot;Our agents make the difference,&uot; said Harry Lee Cross III. &uot;They love showing off Suffolk’s 430-square miles because it’s a beautiful land with established neighborhoods, planned communities and commercial businesses.

&uot;AcrossTown is a member of the Greater Hampton Roads Realtors Association, the Virginia Realtors Association, and the National Association of Realtors. And, as a Buyer’s Agent we offer knowledgeable and professional agents and a buyer-broker relationship to show property and facilitate negotiations.

&uot;We also provide 24-hour access to the Multiple Listing Service, and we have a relocation package. Through the Re/Max organization, we are also able to act as an international referral company.&uot;

Hugh Ritchie Cross, vice president of Re/Max AcrossTown, added that as a listing agent, they can offer a high level of market presence through national and local advertising, with listings posted on the Internet and the agency sells more than 35 percent of its own listings.

While Hugh and Harry Lee Cross are the guiding hands at the helm of Re/Max AcrossTown, their mother, Jean Ritchie Cross, still pops in to see the office staff and agents that serve the company. She knows the business since she served as secretary to her late husband when he first set up shop.

&uot;From the very start, Harry believed that honesty and loyalty was the best foundation for the business,&uot; said Jean Cross. &uot;His success was attributed to his special way with people. He knew just about everyone in Suffolk, so when he heard someone want to buy and he had a recent conversation with someone else thinking of selling, he just put the two together and everyone was happy. It helped to build his reputation as a great salesman.&uot;

Cross added that her husband also had great success in working with owners of rental property and the tenants.

&uot;He managed the rental accounts with a fine business sense and also worked with the renters who sometimes needed a little understanding,&uot; said Cross.

&uot;Above all, Harry Lee loved what he did for a living. He was very proud when both sons joined the company. Now, our grandson Harry Lee Cross IV is a graduate of JMU and he works with the office, coaches basketball at Nansemond-Suffolk Academy, and he is involved with Youth Leadership Conferences.

&uot;Our daughter, Nancy Cross Pair, is with Cohoon and Cross, an advertising and promotion business in Chesapeake. Another grandson, Joseph McIlwain Cross, graduates in May with a degree in accounting. He is an honor graduate and we very proud of that. He is going to work with Goodman & Co. an accounting firm in Norfolk.&uot;

While family is the mainstay of the business, Cross is quick to note that the loyalty and support of the office staff has been tremendous over the years.

Today, Lynn G. Johnson serves as an associate broker and the office manager. She has been with the firm for more than 18 years. Married to Tommy Johnson, she is the mother of an 11-year old, Brent, and the family lives in the King’s Fork Road neighborhood.

She is the first of a line of people who affirm they are with the company because they have great respect for the Cross family.

Julie Horton, sales assistant and marketing specialist, a four-year employee, is married to Jimmy Horton and the couple has three children, Mallory, Jay and Taylor. The family lives in Western Branch.

Alyce Morgan serves as the assistant rental manager for Hugh Cross and she is also the receptionist at the office. She has been with the company for 12-years and lives in the Everets area, just off Route 10. Married for 40 years, she and her husband, Lewis, have a daughter, Teresa, of West Palm Beach, Fl. She is also the grandmother to two boys.

Sales associate Marion L. Grigg of Pitchkettle Road has been with the Cross family for 12-years. He and his wife, Diane, have two children, Parris and Alyssa.

Barbara Kayes, a four-year employee, lives in Riverview and she and husband, Michael, have two

daughters.

Sales agent Bob Hayes has been with Re/Max AcrossTown for one year and he lives in Bennetts Creek Landing.

Lisa Branton, an agent who is also training to be an appraiser, said she came to the company less than two years ago looking for someone to take her in as a trainee.

She added that Harry Lee Cross allowed her that opportunity. She also earned the &uot;Rookie of the Year&uot; award. Scott Branton has also been with the company only a short time.

Married to Lisa, he said he came to Re/Max AcrossTown because of the company’s reputation for integrity and knowledgeable agents who conduct themselves with professionalism and honesty.

Agent Linda Dickens, wife of Suffolk’s Mayor E. Dana Dickens III, is also new to the business. A resident of the village of Eclipse, she has one son who is his father’s namesake.