For Johnson Byrd, the transition from high school teacher and coach to insurance agent was an easy one. As he points out, both careers require a drive to succeed and a passion for education. So, when he got a job opportunity with Farm Bureau, he decided to take the leap.
4 min read
Meet Loyal NAIFA Member Johnson Byrd
By Ronan Friend on 10/31/22 10:00 AM
Topics: Member Spotlight Member Profile Loyal Member Profile
3 min read
Meet Loyal NAIFA Member Michael Herring
By Ronan Friend on 10/26/22 10:00 AM
When Michael Herring, CLU®, ChFC®, LUTCF, was studying business in college, he expected to build a career in finance, but he decided to change direction when he took a course on insurance. After graduation, he took a job as a claims adjuster and, three years later, became an insurance agent. Now, he works primarily with Nebraska’s farming community. He protects their farmhouses, combines, and tractors; provides liability coverage for the rare chemical spill or animal collision; and is his clients’ first call after a hailstorm.
Topics: Member Spotlight Member Profile Loyal Member Profile
3 min read
Meet Loyal NAIFA Member Julianne Hertel
By Ronan Friend on 9/12/22 10:00 AM
In 2007, Julianne Hertel, LACP, was looking for a new career. She talked with several professionals to explore her options but found the perfect fit with New York Life. Now, she helps protect Main Street Americans with comprehensive insurance and financial planning.
Topics: Advocacy LILI LACP Member Spotlight Leaders Loyal Member Loyal Member Profile Life Annuity Certified Professional (LACP) Program
3 min read
Meet Loyal NAIFA Member Angela White
By Ronan Friend on 9/6/22 10:00 AM
Angela White is committed to recruiting diverse talent into the insurance and financial services industry and making sure they have the resources they need to succeed.
Getting Started
After several years in sales, White took a job recruiting agents and fell in love with the industry. She’s motivated by a genuine drive to connect with people and have meaningful conversations. She seeks out underrepresented talent—women, people of color, LGBTQ+ individuals—and finds ways to set them up for success.
Topics: Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Member Spotlight Member Profile Loyal Member Profile
4 min read
Meet Loyal NAIFA Member Christine Pikutis-Musuneggi
By Ronan Friend on 8/8/22 10:00 AM
As a college student, Christine Pikutis-Musuneggi, CPRC, CLTC, LACP, planned to study architecture. Her plans changed, however, when her family inherited a third-generation business and needed a financial planner to work with insurance agents, attorneys, accountants, and the other professionals required to run a business. So, Pikutis-Musuneggi changed her major to business management and became a financial planner.
Topics: Member Spotlight Member Profile Loyal Member Profile
2 min read
Meet Loyal NAIFA Member Nicholas Limongelli
By Ronan Friend on 7/18/22 10:00 AM
In 2012, Nicholas Limongelli went into the family business and joined Northeast Financial Network. Now the Director of Insurance Brokerage, Limongelli helps his clients find the right disability insurance coverage and serves as a resource for other financial advisors who sell disability insurance.
Topics: Member Spotlight Loyal Member Loyal Member Profile
3 min read
Meet Loyal NAIFA Member Brian Falconer
By Ronan Friend on 7/11/22 10:00 AM
Brian Falconer, LUTCF, is a Managing Partner at Securian Advisors of New England with a heart for serving Main Street USA and mentoring the next generation of financial professionals.
Getting Started
Brian Falconer says that when he was growing up in Portsmouth, NH, financial literacy was non-existent in his family. His grandparents were immigrants from Ireland, Scotland, and Italy, and none of them graduated from high school. When he attended Fordham University, he became the first in his family to attend college. He had always been good at math but found that majoring in accounting wasn’t for him. When he took courses and finance and economics, however, he found his passion and graduated with a major in finance and a minor in economics.
Topics: Member Spotlight Member Profile Loyal Member Profile
2 min read
Meet Loyal NAIFA Member Michael Case
By Ronan Friend on 7/6/22 10:00 AM
In 2012, Michael Case was working in sales and looking for a new career. In the process of administering his father’s estate, he was working with several financial service professionals and found their work intriguing. After a few conversations with the managing director at Northwestern Mutual, he decided to join Northwestern Mutual as a financial advisor.
Topics: Member Spotlight Member Profile Loyal Member Profile
4 min read
Meet Loyal NAIFA Member Heather Lindsley
By Ronan Friend on 6/27/22 10:00 AM
A financial advisor with Guided Path Financial Services and Retirement Planning, Heather Lindsley, LUTCF, RICP, LACP1, serves her community in Green Bay, WI, by building meaningful connections.
What It’s All About
Lindsley came to insurance and financial services at the suggestion of a friend, but she didn’t take the leap right away. She had young children at the time, but once they were old enough for school, she decided to give it a try.
Topics: Member Spotlight Member Profile Loyal Member Profile
5 min read
Meet Loyal NAIFA Member Ryan Ballesteros
By Ronan Friend on 6/22/22 10:00 AM
When Ryan Ballesteros1 was studying Forensic Psychology at Walden University, he didn’t imagine a career helping protect families as a life insurance agent, much less becoming a Partner at New York Life. However, when his son’s mother was pregnant with their first child, Ballesteros saw the power of life insurance. His son’s grandfather passed away, leaving a death benefit to take care of his wife and six children. Ballesteros was able to pay off debt, start a savings account for his son and purchase life insurance for himself.
Around the same time, Ballesteros reached the top of his career path. He considered his New York Life agent and wondered, “What would it be like if I was walking in their shoes?” That’s when he decided to become a financial professional with New York Life, to make a real difference in the lives of families like his own.