Past NAIFA President, Robert O. Smith, JD, CLU, ChFC, LIC, will be inducted into The Michigan Insurance Hall of Fame. The event will take place during the 21^st annual induction ceremony on August 11, 2015, in Lansing.

Partners Advantage Insurance Services, LLC, has appointed Charlie Gipple Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing. In his new position, Gipple will manage all sales, marketing, recruiting, agent training and sales support activities across all company segments, which include the Platinum, Premier and Advantage divisions. Partners Advantage is a NAIFA IA Partner and a national marketing organization serving the life, annuity and linked-benefit needs of agencies throughout the country.

[caption id="attachment_3152" align="alignright" width="150"] Mark Madgett 

Four NAIFA members are the recipients of the 2015 Real Life Stories Client Recognition Program, which celebrates insurance agents and advisors for their outstanding professional and personal commitments to supporting clients and their families in times of need.

By Paul Holman

Harold Petersen was inducted into the Iowa Insurance Hall of Fame last month at the Olmstead Center at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. A pioneer of, and advocate for the disability income (DI)insurance industry, Petersen was one of five insurance professionals honored during the Iowa Insurance Hall of Fame’s 19^th annual ceremonial dinner.

Former NAIFA Trustee Randy Scritchfield, CFP, LUTCF, of Damascus, Md., has joined Securities America, with $115 million in client assets. Securities America is a wholly owned subsidiary of Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services Inc.

Former NAIFA employee, John Hathaway, has joined New York Life as an agent. In his new position, Hathaway will be selling a variety of products and services, including life and universal life insurance, annuities, retirement planning and 401(k) rollovers. He worked for NAIFA for four years before joining New York Life.

AIG Financial Network has announced that Edward A. Zabielski, Jr., CAP, is the organization’s leading sales agent for 2014. AIG Financial Network honored him at its recent Annual Leadership Conference.

NAIFA regrets the death of former NAIFA Trustee and Secretary John Peterson, who passed away earlier this month in Tulsa, OK. He was 89 years old.