It is with the greatest pleasure that I here congratulate one of my dearest and most long standing (I’d sure as hell hear about it if I said “oldest”) friends, Barbara Crowley, Brokers Clearing House, Ltd., West Des Moines, IA, as the 2021 recipient of The Douglas Mooers Award for Excellence, presented by the National Association of Independent Life Brokerage Agencies (NAILBA) at a special awards dinner during their 40th annual conference.
To my eye our industry’s top honor, the Mooers Award is named after NAILBA’s Founding Chairman, H. Douglas Mooers, and was established in May of 1986. This annual award honors excellence in brokerage and is bestowed upon the individual most committed to furthering brokerage and independent life brokerage as a distribution system. Further, nominees are those who have demonstrated outstanding dedication to NAILBA, the industry we all love, and generally those that are dedicated to giving back to something bigger than themselves. Nominees are dedicated insurance professionals with superior career accomplishments as well as outstanding records of service to the community. Mooers Award recipients are this country’s peer-recognized leaders of brokerage.
NAILBA’s Past Chair Chad Milner described her, “With 40 years in the industry, (Barbara) brings experience, knowledge and continued passion in an ever-changing industry.”
Barbara is the CEO of BCH, a multi-carrier wholesale distributor of quality life insurance, long term care, disability income and annuity products. She started her brokerage career in 1977 with BCH, learning the insurance business from every aspect. Of her work with BCH Barbara states, “We are not simply a source for products. Rather, we are an essential resource for creating solutions. Leveraging our diverse and talented team of experts, we analyze each situation thoroughly to ensure that advisors have the perfect solution for their clients. Knowing how to match clients with insurance carriers requires finely tuned underwriting expertise. Over the years, we have repeatedly won national recognition for our ability to problem solve and place the most challenging cases.” That in itself is exemplary service to our industry and the clients who depend on insurance professionals to protect their families.
In addition Barbara has worked as a consultant for insurance carriers, served on numerous insurance company advisory boards and been the featured speaker at a variety of industry meetings. She has authored a number of articles for trade publications including, thankfully, Broker World. She is a past Chair of NAILBA and served on the board of the NAILBA Charitable Foundation. She is an active member of Finseca, NAIFA, SFSP and FPA. She has served as president of LIFE, Inc., and was a founding partner and served as a board member and officer for LifeMark Partners, Inc., (now part of LIBRA Insurance Partners).
I can’t remember exactly when I met Barbara, most likely at either a Life, Inc., meeting or an early NAILBA meeting (maybe the First Colony Hospitality suite), but her respect for my father, and my respect for hers, formed the cornerstone of a wonderful friendship that I’m blessed to have. I’ve found her to be a delightful, engaging and fiercely loyal friend and observed the same of her in her interactions with others. She is truly widely and enthusiastically loved and respected within the NAILBA family and the brokerage industry. So I add my voice to many others in saying thank you Barbara for your friendship, and congratulations on an honor richly deserved for work well done in an industry certainly much the better for having you in it. [SPH]
