Florida Association Names Officers, Board Members

Earl Horton, Jr., executive vice president of Bouchard Insurance Inc. in Clearwater, Fla. has been named chairman of the Florida Association of Insurance Agents during the group’s annual conference in Orlando, Fla. Horton sits on FAIA’s Finance Committee and is a member of the Agents Advisory Council for United Health Care and a director for the Florida Building Materials Association. He also serves on the board of Citizens Property Insurance Corp.

Other FAIA officers include:

Chairman elect, Steve Simms, president, Nelson & Mosley Inc., Winter Park, Fla. He is also a member of the Travelers Insurance Co. Select National Agents Advisory Council. Chairmanship of FAIA is Simms’ most recent accomplishment. His previous positions include FAIA chairman, chairman of the Agency Owners Council Finance Committee, and CAN National Commercial Lines PACER chairman.

Vice-chairman, Kirk Ball, senior vice president and chief operating officer of Fisher-Brown Insurance in Pensacola, Fla., where he is involved in the overall direction and management of an agency employing 125 associates in five different offices. Ball has also served on the FAIA Board of Directors and as chairman of the Automation Committee.

New board members:

Roger Gibson, co-founder of GHG Insurance, a division of the Sihle Insurance Group in Jacksonville, Fla. He has managed commercial property casualty insurance operations for 22 years. Gibson serves on several committees with FAIA and is local board chairman and president of the Independent Insurance Agents of Northeast Florida.

Jim Skiles, with the Howard Hall/HRH Agency in Gainesville, Fla. specializes in life and health, as well as casualty insurance. He has been chairman of FAIA Catastrophe, Sales, Marketing, and Member Services committees and a member of the HRH Real Estate and Health Care National Practice Groups.

Tom Washburn, CEO of Wilson, Washburn and Forster Insurance in Miami, Fla. has been president of the South Florida Chartered Property Casualty Underwriters Society. Washburn has also been president of the Independent Insurance Agents of Dade County and a member of several FAIA committees.

During the Orlando Conference FAIA announced several awards winners.

Leon M. Weekes, chairman of Weekes & Callaway Inc., a general insurance agency, founded in 1954 in Delray Beach, Fla., received the “Mitchell Stallings Memorial Award.” FAIA’s most prestigious honor, is given to those whose work will leave a lasting mark on Florida’s insurance landscape. Even after retiring nearly 10 years ago, Weekes is one of FAIA’s most active and vocal members. He served as president of the Independent Insurance Agents of Palm Beach County and was also a FAIA director for two terms.

Raymond Butler, president of Butler, Buckley and Deets Insurance Agency in Miami, received the “McKay Cup” for exemplary political fundraising. He raised nearly $1,000 from his agency last year. He has served as director and president of the Independent Insurance Agents of Dade County.

Rep. Dennis Ross, R-Lakeland, chairman of the Florida House Insurance Committee was honored as the “Legislator of the Year.”He is also a member of the Commerce Council, Ethics and Elections, Judicial, and Judicial Appropriations Committees. First elected to the House in 2000, Representative Ross has worked tirelessly to better Florida’s insurance industry.

Marianne Vernon, a member of the J. Rolfe Davis Agency, received the “Irma Platt Award.” The award is presented to agency employees who demonstrate extraordinary customer service to policyholders. Vernon began her career in 1951 after receiving a scholarship to attend junior college in Orlando, Fla., awarded by the National Secretaries Association.

Source: Florida Association of Insurance Agents

Topics Florida Agencies