Inductees

Speak to anyone who runs a successful business, especially in Springfield, and they make one thing clear right away: If you don’t give back to your community, you’re not truly successful.

A prime example is Bryan Properties. Not long after it launched in 1985, it began sponsoring a number of sporting events and organizations in the state. Among them was the PGA Korn Ferry Tour’s Price Cutter Charity Championship presented by Dr Pepper.

“We first sponsored some of the parties at Highland Springs (Country Club). It was the social event,” said Bryan Magers, founder of Bryan Properties. “It’s a beautiful course – so much fun to get out there and walk it.”

In many ways, his company has been walking the walk for years when it comes to financially supporting sports in the state, and it’s why the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame proudly honored Bryan Properties with the John Q. Hammons Founder’s Award at the 2022 Enshrinement presented by Killian Construction.

The Founder’s Award is bestowed on companies which champion the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame as well as sports in general in the state. The award is named in honor of the founder of the Hall of Fame and the PCCC.

Bryan Properties has been a corporate sponsor of the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame for years – Magers was first listed as a contributor in 1995, the second Enshrinement in the Hall’s history – and also has been a longtime Lead Sponsor of the PCCC.

That’s significant. After all, both organizations are 501(c)(3) not-for-profits. The Hall of Fame has relied almost exclusively on private donations, not taxpayer dollars. Meanwhile, the PCCC is managed by the Hall of Fame and has gifted more than $18.3 million to Ozarks children’s charities since 1990.

The company participates in the Hall of Fame’s numerous fundraising events such as Celebrity Golf Classics, Sports Enthusiasts Luncheons and the Sporting Clays Classic, as well as its Enshrinements. In the PCCC, the company sponsors a golf event, the Bryan Properties Nighttime Golf Classic, and other fundraisers of the tournament.

Magers himself has long served on the Board of Trustees of the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame and is its Vice Chairman. He was honored with the President’s Award in 2019.

Additionally, the company supports Missouri State University Athletics and University of Missouri Athletics. In the 1980s, it joined the sponsorship coalition of the Bass Pro Shops Tournament of Champions, a basketball event featuring high school teams from all across the country. It also supports Drury University basketball, where Magers years ago was a radio color analyst.

“Bryan and his company have been so important to the growth of the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame,” said Jerald Andrews, CEO and Executive Director of the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame and Executive Director of the PCCC. “He truly wants what is best for the Hall of Fame and the tournament.”

At a PCCC Celebration of Sharing a couple of years ago – that’s when the tournament distributes checks to each charity – Andrews offered a heartfelt thank-you, saying, “Whenever I’ve reached out, Bryan Magers has never said no to me.”

For Bryan Properties, a number of reasons are why it sponsors the Hall of Fame and PCCC.

“Jerald is a class act,” Magers said. “And the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame is a tremendous gift to the Ozarks.”

“The Hall of Fame gives us (Springfield) a sense of respect that a state Sports Hall of Fame is in our city,” Magers added. “When I’m traveling and I say ‘The Missouri Sports Hall of Fame is in Springfield,’ they say, ‘Really? I didn’t know that.’”

Magers has long been a sports fan, as are many employees. Years ago, his dad officiated the Greenwood Blue & Gold Tournament, a holiday basketball event which recently celebrated its 75th year.

“Sports has always been a part of my life,” Magers said. “I grew up with my dad being a softball umpire and basketball referee. He took me and Randy around to all these little towns. We got to sit there and watch basketball games, got to go in the locker rooms and meet all the coaches that were part of the history. It was just exciting. He had the record for most (Blue & Gold) games called for a long time.”

The support is only because of the success of Bryan Properties. Magers served in the Army and then, in 1973, began selling real estate. In 1980, he ventured into building.

He then took a big risk like any entrepreneur, opening Bryan Properties in 1985. At the time, he sensed he could make it work and so he rolled up his sleeves to make it happen. Those first few years, there were only about six employees.

And now look. The company has grown to what’s now more than 150 employees.

“Our growth is all about our people, especially the ones who do the day-to-day work to keep us moving forward — our housekeeping and maintenance crews, our property managers and their staffs, the people who work daily with our residents. They are the reason we exist.”

Among them is a top-notch corporate staff: Ericka Peppers in operations, Brad Gebhard in finance, Nicole Hager in HR, and an excellent development team led by Craig Edwards.

Among the most visible properties is Bear Village, which sits to the west of Missouri State University. It has 650 residents. A freshman dorm also opened in the fall of 2020.

Additionally, 10 percent of Drury University students live in housing built by Bryan Properties.

Magers took advice from his dad and his brother, Randy, and credits them for his success.

“I followed the advice of my dad and brother – buy adjoining properties and try to create something new,” Magers said.

He also counts Jim Anderson as a key figure who helped in the company’s growth. Anderson was the President of the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce for a quarter of a century, beginning in 1988, when Anderson led the community’s redoubled efforts to enhance manufacturing and other economic factors in the city.

“From those first days, when I had an ad in the paper that said, ‘Cash for your home equity’ … it wasn’t always a straight line. It was up and down,” Magers explained. “It wasn’t really anything I was growing continually or setting any goals. Nothing like that. It was just finding lots to build on and houses where the owners would sell. Our growth has been amazing.”

Talk about hard work. The two houses on south Broadway Avenue were a nice start.

“From there, I started building duplexes. I would look for land or lots, and I started building duplexes by Kickapoo High School,” Magers said. “I built about 16 duplexes, and then 15 or 16 out on Highway M, Republic Road.”

And that’s what defines Bryan Properties. It’s always looking to grow, always trying to be creative in the way it provides housing and – best of all – always makes sure to give back to the communities that have enabled its success.

To Magers, the Founder’s Award is special.

“It recognizes the company. The reason Bryan Properties has done so well is not because of me,” Magers said. “I’ve got a great group to work with, and everybody knows the lane to work in. Everybody works hard. Everybody wants to accomplish our goals. I get real emotional when I think about the people I’ve gotten to meet because of my business. It means a lot.”