KILLEEN, Texas — Shelly Salas is a U.S. Army veteran and real estate broker in Killeen, but helping families find their forever home isn’t where her story begins.
Shelly was born in a small town called Frostproof, Florida.
”It’s such a small town that everybody knew everybody — you could leave your purse in the car, you could leave your doors unlocked,” Salas said.
"It was just an amazing place to grow up, but there really wasn’t much to do there after high school.”
She had very little growing up and knew she had to chart her own path — that's where the Army came in.
”I felt that the only way to do it was to join the military,” Salas said.
“No one in my family had ever done it, so it was a scary, scary decision for me to make. I actually made the decision without telling my parents.”
Looking back at old photos reminded her that she made the right decision for a young Shelly Salas.
”It’s a journey in my life that has brought me to where I am today,” Salas said.
"It’s all about the people who are around you.”
20 years later she has a successful real estate company she started with the husband she met while they were both in the Army.
Along with selling homes to Central Texans, she hosts a weekly radio show on real estate, and does all she can to give back to the children of her community.
”She’s so caring and intense, but she's goofy at the same time, in all the best ways,” said Missy Larosee with the Salas Realty Group.
“She's human.”
That humanity is why Salas and her husband dedicate as much time to giving back as they do to selling houses.
”It’s how many lives were we able to positively impact,” Salas said.
“That’s what’s super important to Luis and myself.”
Salas tells 25 News that giving back to the kids in our community isn't just about providing something she didn't have, but investing in future leaders.