My role is to ask the right questions of business owners in order to identify their needs and bring together a team of talented experts that can create the most holistic risk management and insurance program possible. I really like that Parker Smith & Feek enables us to have service at the forefront of our minds, instead of commission, which can often be a huge conflict of interest. If your renewal has a 10% increase and that means that I get paid 10% more on your account, would you really trust that I worked as hard as possible to get you the best rate?
With a privately held brokerage, I can consult genuinely and keep my clients’ best interests at heart.
What inspired you to start a career in risk management?
My neighbor and dad’s good friend got me into it, originally. He told me that he thought I’d be good at it, gave me a flyer, and I got a job with a broker.
However, I left the industry for a while and went into trout egg sales for a large distributor called Trout Lodge. Their offices are in Bonney Lake, but they have locations all over the world, like in Switzerland and Spain. Trout is a really important fish worldwide – I think we get really caught up in thinking about salmon here in the Pacific Northwest, but it’s not readily available around the world. Trout is cheaper and easier to raise, an excellent source of protein, and depending on the preparation, it’s absolutely delicious.
I came back to insurance relatively quickly, though. I wanted to take another crack at it, and I’m happy to say it was the right decision.
Do you volunteer with any organizations or charities?
I do quite a bit – or I did before COVID-19. We used to participate in a program providing meals for homeless folks every other Friday, and I’ve done a lot of work for St. Leo’s Food Connection.
I also coached Bellarmine baseball last year. I like to stay involved with Bellarmine through hosting or helping with retreats, even though I went to Foss. I’ve been trying to get over that (laughs).
We do a lot of things here and there and donate to our local churches. I also sit on the board of the Job Carr Cabin Museum, and the CHI Franciscan Finance Committee.
What is something your coworkers would be surprised to learn about you?
I play the drums and make my own music; I have a full studio at home. I like to blend genres like rock, hip hop, and indie music – I used to record, too. I like to put together melodic and imaginative music, but there is so much to learn when it comes to mixing and fine tuning. I’ll pull in a lot of different sounds and then work with my drum pad and 24-key piano to bring everything together.
Where did you grow up?
I grew up in downtown Tacoma – between Hilltop and the North Slope. It was a nice-ish neighborhood at the time, but it’s improved a lot. My family later moved to Fircrest for the rest of my childhood, which is where my wife and I still call home.
If you could change one thing about the insurance industry, what would it be?
I would make insurance policies easier for clients to understand, although that’s one thing we are here to help with! Increased transparency would mean that fewer people are getting cut rate coverage that leaves them hanging out to dry when a large claim arises.
Your wife had a baby during the pandemic – what was that like?
My daughter was born on the exact day that the shutdown orders came down – March 13th.
When we checked into the hospital, we were allowed to have visitors, and everything was business as usual. The very next day, everything was shut down and no one could come see us. We felt very fortunate that we were able to have our parents and loved ones there at least briefly – I think my parents may have literally been the last visitors to leave the birth center.
But it was also very peaceful and intimate to not have anyone coming through the door right after my wife delivered. It’s strange looking back though, because no one was wearing masks even after the shutdown except for some of the ER personnel – it still wasn’t mandated at the time and we didn’t know much about the virus.
My wife and I have actually talked about how having a baby hasn’t had the huge impact on our day-to-day lives that we expected because of the pandemic. We can’t go anywhere due to COVID-19, so it’s not as if we’re missing out on any big events because we’re home with our daughter. We’ve been grateful for the time together.
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