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About
Attending the charter convention of the newly formed NAHU in 1930 were delegates from
Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Kansas City, Los Angeles,
Milwaukee, Pittsburgh, Portland, San Francisco, and Seattle.
Local associations in these cities were the pioneers. Featured
as speakers at
the charter convention were six Accident and Health men who, in
the ensuing years, did much to raise the stature and prestige of
the Accident and Health business. They were Harold R. Gordon,
then Executive Secretary of the Health and Accident Underwriters
Conference and later its managing director; C. O. Pauley, then
Secretary of the Great Northern Life, Chicago, who later
succeeded Mr. Gordon as head of the Conference following the
latter’s untimely death; E. H. “Count” Mueller, who was elected
head of the association in June, 1933; Armand Sommer, who served
as its President in 1935; E. C. Budlong, then Vice President of
Federal Life of Chicago, and Sam C. Carroll, then Vice President
of Mutual Benefit Health and Accident Association, Omaha, whose
company over the years has been one of the most active
supporters of the national movement.
According to press accounts of the first meeting, the speakers
expressed courageous optimism as to the National Association’s
future. Their firm conviction was that it was destined to occupy
a place in the insurance business just as important as that of
the National Association of Life Underwriters, Health and
Accident Underwriters Conference, and American Medical
Association in the medical field. “The high ideals of these
organizations were the patterns that we sought to emulate,” said
“Count” Mueller, whose devotion is just as strong today as it
was 75 years ago.
NAHU HISTORY
And, while the Pittsburgh chapter was among the first in 1930,
there are over 200 local and state associations now chartered
across the country. Like the national association
Pittsburgh has also lead a mixed and colorful past. The
Pittsburgh chapter actually went dormant in the early 1990's and
remained dormant for a number of years. It was in 1998
that Ron Hoffman, president, and Robert Keggle, president-elect
of the Pennsylvania Association of Health Underwriters made a
few phone calls to Pittsburgh insurance contacts and set a meeting date to
re-activate the Pittsburgh Chapter. About eighteen insurance men
and women attended that meeting and fifteen of them applied for
membership on that cold February morning. Immediately the new members
elected the following officers: President - Eric Neisholss; Vice
President - Roy Laux; Secretary - Gary Gillen; and
Treasurer - Mark Shaffer.
Among those early leaders new leaders emerged, including Ray
Phillips, Ed Willig, and Doug Moore, all of whom helped the chapter grow from that modest group of fifteen in 1998 to 'Large Chapter' status
with over 100 members, as established by
the national association in a few short years.
Pittsburgh's consistent and rapid growth is testament to the
strong leaders who have stepped forward to support the chapter
with their commitment of both time and resources.
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