Chair From the
The Big “I” is an amazing organization essential to our industry, both in Kentucky and across the nation. Since the late 1890s, our voice is the strongest it has ever been. We have small one-person agency members along with some of the biggest agencies in the nation, but our biggest asset is all the great people across the Commonwealth. When Big I Kentucky had the idea to honor the seasoned professionals in our industry, we were unsure how many responses we would receive. You will see in this issue that we have surpassed the estimated 40 individuals by more than 50 people! The common theme seems to be, “I never intended to spend my life in insurance, but here I am.” The longevity of employees is impressive. In my agency, Brenda Berryman just hit 50 years working in insurance. We admire that she knows everybody that walks in the door and how her voice on the phone smoothes out the rough spots for hundreds of clients. Be proud of your time spent in this incredible industry, where each client, each phone call and each interaction is another chance to do something great. Our industry is ever-changing, but our people keep adapting and servicing our clients despite the obstacles we face. Currently, Big I Kentucky is sifting through boxes of pictures from our rich history. There is a fabulous portrait from the Louisville Board Meeting in 1925, which shows a large crowd (dressed to the nines) gathered for banquets in hotel ballrooms, but there are thousands of candid shots. In 1993, I attended my first convention, but we have photos from events in the 1970s. Our past leaders have spent some time identifying the people in these pictures, but there are many faces we don’t recognize that you could help name. InsurPac and KAPAC need your support. My goal is to have more members contribute and more agencies with 100% participation. One hundred percent participation means every employee in your agency contributes $10 or $20. If every person in a Big I agency contributed, we could meet our fundraising goal and continue to give Kentucky agents the political advocacy they need and deserve. Nationally, Big I lobbied for you when the 20% cap on taxes surfaced and was able to get pass-through entities included. This change saved agency principals millions of dollars. Please remember your savings and donate to InsurPac and KAPAC, so we can continue to do what is right for you and your agency. As you may already know, we canceled our 2020 Convention and Tradeshow and decided to leave our Board of Directors the same for 2021. Six months ago, I did not think either of these decisions would be necessary. I am excited to serve another year as your Big I Kentucky Chair. Hopefully, I will have the opportunity to complete agency visits, help host in-person road shows and make meaningful progress for our members. This year, Steve Kinkade completed his term as our State National Director, and we have two excellent candidates campaigning to fill this position. Over the years, Steve has been a strong voice for Big I Kentucky members and is highly respected by his peers. Please, email or call Steve and thank him for the work he has done on our behalf. Hopefully, we continue to make progress on COVID-19 and will get back to a new normal soon. Be safe, enjoy the change in weather and keep protecting your clients with great coverage.
4 | Kentucky IA - Fall 2020
