Memories of Ft. Myers and The Purpose of Insurance

The experiences of life, rather than what we own, make for a fulfilled human experience. The Cold Stone Creamery was a fixture in Ft. Myers Beach for over 30 years. The above photograph was me goofing around at Cold Stone Creamery next to the Ft Myers pier.

There is a yearly Memorial Day weekend sailboat race from Tampa Bay to Ft. Myers. One of my biggest surprises was having three young Merlin Yacht Racing fans show up with wizard hats as we pulled our B-32 sailboat into a slip at Bonita Bill’s Café following the finish.

The Ft. Myers pier was such an iconic fixture. At the end of the pier, one could view the entirety of the beach and people enjoying themselves. The photo below is at the end of the pier, with another sailboat making its way to the finish of the sailboat race.

Bonita Bill’s Café was an oasis after racing all night. Shrimp, grits, and a cold beer with the crew, competitors, friends, and family is a weird combination at 9 am in the morning. But God knows how much I enjoyed the camaraderie, telling stories about navigating the right or wrong way during the race, and the crazy adventures along the way. Then, my good lawyer friend, Jamie Myers, would run the awards banquet later at night with more stories and great fun. People sometimes ask me how much money I win when racing sailboats. How about a bottle of Mount Gay dark rum to be shared with my crew?

Insurance plays a role in all these experiences without thinking about it. We insure our sailboats to protect our investment. Business owners insure their properties and invite lenders to loan capital. Those businesses provide a place for us to enjoy ourselves and workers to make a living while those entrepreneurs profit from their investments while providing us great fun. Insurance is an extremely important social product. It allows for much deeper life experiences, personally and in business.

Insurance softens the financial and emotional harm when communities such as Ft. Myers are devasted. Everybody involved in the insurance industry should be proud that they sold a product to people and businesses that is so essential to a community. In When Words Collide: The Golden Rule – The Purpose of Insurance is to… Insure, we quoted insurance industry educator Bill Wilson:

Never, ever forget in everything that you do professionally that the purpose of insurance is to insure and that the mission of this industry and every professional in it is to assist individuals, families and organizations in minimizing their exposure to serious or catastrophic financial loss. This begins with the insurance contract and ends with YOU.

Now, it is the claims industry’s turn to soften Hurricane Ian’s blow and make the insurance product work.

Thought For The Day

The most beautiful things are not associated with money; they are memories and moments. If you don’t celebrate those, they can pass you by.
—Alek Wek