People & Places

Bob Amado, president of Colemont’s Northern California offices, has retired, effective Jan. 1, 2006. Doris Barnett has been named his successor.

Amado joined Colemont in 1997 and was instrumental in growing the company’s offices in San Francisco, Sacramento and Fresno, Calif. He will continue to work with Colemont through 2006, helping transition his book of business and leadership functions.

Barnett joined Colemont in 1997 and currently is an executive vice president and casualty broker in Colemont’s Chicago office.

Pinnacol Assurance, Colorado’s workers’ compensation insurer, has elected Gary Johnson as chairman. Johnson replaces Diedra Garcia, who stepped down Nov. 30.

Garcia is stepping down to dedicate more time to her company, DRG Construction, recognized by ColoradoBiz magazine as one of the fastest-growing minority businesses in Colorado, according to Pinnacol.

Johnson was first appointed to Pinnacol’s board in April 2003 and has served on the board’s audit, compensation and ethics committees. He is president of Strategic Insurance Consultants Inc. Johnson’s career in the commercial insurance business spans more than 40 years, during which time he served as vice president and Denver branch manager for a four-state territory of CNA Commercial Insurance. He holds the designation of Chartered Property and Casualty Underwriter (CPCU) and is a member of the Professional Independent Insurance Agents of Colorado (PIIAC).

Governor Bill Owens will appoint a new director to fill Garcia’s seat on the Pinnacol board.

Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of Washington (IIABW) in Bellevue, Wash., a statewide independent insurance agents trade association, has elected Mike Reed of Mitchell, Reed and Associates as IIABW president, Jim Rogers of Rogers and Norman in Seattle as IIABW president-elect and Jim Slaugenhaupt of Slaugenhaupt Insurance in Chelan, Wash., as IIABW secretary-treasurer.

IIABW also has presented the following awards: the Don C.Burnam Lifetime Achievement Award to Bill Gellor of Gellor Insurance in Port Angeles; Agent of the Year to David Hargreaves of Argus Insurance in Yakima; Company Person of the Year to Mike McGavick of Safeco Insurance in Seattle; Max Walton Insurance Education to Susan Scott of IIABW in Bellevue; and Young Agent of the Year to the Young Agents Committee.

Glendale, Calif.-based S.I.U. LLC promoted Angela C. Urrutia executive vice president of the company. S.I.U., LLC operates as a managing general agency and underwrites property DIC in California.

Hamilton Brewart Insurance, Upland Calif., has hired John McInerney as senior vice president. His focus will be marketing, producer sales development and carrier relations.

McInerney began his insurance career in 1979 as a producer with Bolton & Co., and most recently was with Marsh Inc. in Los Angeles as vice president of marketing for property casualty and workers compensation for middle market accounts since 1997.

Integro has appointed Paula Choy principal of management risk practice, for the company’s San Francisco office. Choy has 14 years of experience in directors and officers liability brokerage, most recently serving as senior vice president of Marsh’s western region technology/telecom/life science directors and officers practice.

Orange, Calif.-based Word & Brown General Agency named Don Goldmann vice president of national sales. Goldmann’s career in the insurance industry spans more than 25 years. Most recently, he was national director of sales for CIMS, a general agency serving independent agents and offices in California, Nevada, Arizona, Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri and Illinois. He is past president of California Association of Health Underwriters and serves on its board.

Redondo Beach, Calif.-based Bliss and Glennon Inc., a managing general agent and surplus lines broker, has launched a large property department to be headed by Tony Morgan. He has more than 15 years experience writing large property accounts.

Moody Insurance Agency has named Vanessa Chapman, an insurance executive from Arizona, as personal lines account executive.

Chapman will work to produce new business, with an emphasis on personal lines products including homeowners, automobile, umbrella, watercraft and other personal insurance coverage. For 20 years, she worked with Passey Bond Co. Inc., in Mesa, Ariz., as personal lines manager. In 2004, Chapman was the Arizona State Director for the National Association of Insurance Women (NAIW) and remains an active member.

Esmeralda Temores of Western Security Surplus Insurance Brokers, has won Hoffman Brown Co.’s Service Excellence Award for 2005. For the award, Hoffman Brown measured the quality of the support received from surplus lines brokers, wholesalers and insurance carriers with whom they write direct.

Temores began her insurance career at Western Security Surplus in Pasadena, Calif., as a policy typist — while she was attending school. After she earned her degree, Richard Polizzi, president and CEO convinced her to stay on as an underwriter. Five years later, Temores became a broker.

American Re-Ins. Co., Princeton, N.J., appointed Craig Howie as controller. He was most recently manager of the company’s financial operations department, which includes purchasing and payroll, reinsurance security, corporate tax and financial analysis units. He will retain oversight of those units. Prior to joining American Re in 1989, Howie was a senior tax consultant with Ernst & Young.

HawkSoft Inc., Canby, Ore., has named Chris LeJeune national sales and marketing director, responsible for sales and marketing HawkSoft’s Client Management Systems. Previously, LeJeune was sales manager for FSC Insurance Solutions and Applied Systems, where he represented both rating and client management systems. LeJeune has experience providing technology solutions.

Topics California Colorado Arizona