The Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers announced that a minimum of $100,000 would be donated to Hurricane Katrina relief efforts by the Foundation for Agency Management Excellence (FAME), the CIAB's insurance industry educational foundation.
The FAME board approved using its annual fundraising auction at the Insurance Leadership Forum at The Greenbrier to benefit those for people in the hurricane-ravaged Gulf Coast area.
The Greenbrier conference will be held Oct. 8-12, 2005, in White Sulphur Springs, W.Va.
"Extraordinary times call for an extraordinary response," Ken A. Crerar, president of CIAB, said in a statement. "Our industry has a long history of responding with great heart and character during such times. Once again, our members are putting their own concerns aside to care for the losses of others."
Fred C. Burns, FAME chairman and chairman and managing director of John L. Wortham & Son, L.P. in Houston, stated, "This is a concrete response to overwhelming human need, and I am proud of our members for responding to the call."
Mr. Crerar said CIAB members in affected states will help identify appropriate local and state non-profit organizations, such as foundations and hospitals, to make sure the money "is used as close to the ground as possible."
The FAME auction raised about $90,000 last year; before the decision was made to donate the auction proceeds to Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. Proceeds were expected to reach $100,000 this year.
"We should easily meet that target and, I suspect, exceed it now that it is a benefit for hurricane victims," Mr. Crerar said.
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