Eight Receive 2001, 2002 NAMIC Service Awards

Due to the cancellation of its 2001 convention after 9/11, recipients of both the 2001 and 2002 NAMIC Service Awards were honored during the business meeting of the 107th convention of the National Association of Mutual Insurance Cos. (NAMIC) last week in San Diego. Service Awards are earned by significant contributions to the recipient’s company and the national and state insurance industries.

Service Award winners for 2001 are:
• Mark Bishoff, former president of Farmers Union Co-Operative Insurance Company of Nebraska, Omaha, was cited for his participation as a presenter in many state and national programs and his service as president of the Nebraska Association of Mutual Insurance Cos. He is also a past chairman of NAMIC’s Multilines Conference and the NAMIC Merit Society.
• Julie Buchmeier, secretary/treasurer/manager, German Mutual Insurance Association, Auburn, Neb., has served as a board member and president of the Nebraska Association of Mutual Insurance Cos. A frequent presenter at NAMIC meetings, she serves on the NAMIC Farm Conference Board, chairs the Farm Mutual Conference Technology Committee, is a member of NAMIC’s Convention Planning Committee and the Merit Society.
• Glen Johnson, president of the Ontario Mutual Insurance Association, Cambridge, Ontario, Canada, has been president of the Ontario Mutual Insurance Association for more than 12 years, and is a trustee of the organization’s pension plan.
He has served on NAMIC’s board and is currently a member of the Advisory Council.
• L. Wayne Johnson, secretary/manager, Clay County Mutual Insurance Co., Clay Center, Neb., has been an active member of NAMIC’s Merit Society and served as 2001 chairman. He serves on the Advisory Council and Convention Planning Committee, as well as being secretary/treasurer of the Nebraska Association of Mutual Insurance Cos.

Award recipients recognized in 2002 are:
• Robert Harrison, chairman, Indiana Lumbermens Insurance Co., Indianapolis, and retired chairman of the Insurance Education Foundation (IEF). He served as chairman of NAMIC in 1994, and received the Chairman’s Award in 1997. Harrison effectively represented the association before Congress and dramatically strengthened the financial status of the Insurance Education Foundation as its president.
• Bruce Heaton, president, Frontier Mutual Insurance Co., Lincoln, Ill., was NAMIC’s 1989 chairman, as well as chairman of the Illinois Association of Mutual Insurance Cos. He served NAMIC as treasurer for eight years, in addition to active
membership in NAMIC’s Finance, Convention Planning and Executive Committees and the IEF Board.
• Duane Smith, secretary/manager, Farmers Mutual Insurance Company of Johnson and Shelby Counties, Franklin, Ind., is chairman of the Farm Mutual Conference. He is a member of the NAMIC Claims Committee and the Farm Forum Editorial Advisory Committee. He is Immediate Past President and a board member of the Mutual Insurance Companies Association of Indiana (MICAI), as well as serving on its Farm Mutual Law Review Task Force.
• Daniel Stone, president/CEO, Indiana Farmers Mutual Insurance Co., Indianapolis, is past chairman of the Property Casualty Conference and a member of the NAMIC Convention Planning Committee. A frequent NAMIC presenter, he is also active in MICAI, chairing its Audit Committee. He is also vice chairman of the Insurance Institute of Indiana.

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