The chief executive officer of a Grand Junction-based real estate firm received a newly renamed award recognizing his contributions to the community.

Robert Bray received the Doug Sortor Lifetime Legacy Award from the Community Impact Council of Mesa County. The council presented the award at its annual Inspire Impact Breakfast at Colorado Mesa University.

The recognition was a surprise for Bray, who was asked to attend to present the award.

“This means a lot to me, and I hope that you will carry this legacy of Doug forward in the good work that you all do,” Bray said to those at the event.

The award recognizes the achievements of leaders who’ve demonstrated a lifetime of dedication to community service and philanthropy.

Bray serves as CEO of Bray & Co., a family real estate business his grandparents, Sherman and Roxie Bray, started in 1946 in the remodeled front porch of their downtown Grand Junction home.

Bray & Co. established the Bray Cares Foundation and partners with the Western Colorado Community Foundation to raise funds and make grants to nonprofit organizations. Since its inception in 2019, the foundation has awarded a total of  $110,000 in grants.

The Community Impact Council provides a collective voice and forum for non-profit organizations in Mesa County.

The council renamed its Community Impact Award in memory of Sortor, a champion of the nonprofit community.

Sortor graduated from what’s now Colorado Mesa University. He worked as an executive with United Parcel Service and then Strive, a Grand Junction-based organization that provides services to children and adult with intellectual and developmental challenges. Sortor died in 2022.