In Memoriam
Truly sad news for our entire industry…Henry “Hank” George passed away this January after a brief illness. He was a tireless advocate for the underwriting profession, and traveled around the world sharing his vast knowledge.
In 1969, Hank met Esther Ledesma and they married in 1970. They went on to have two children, Matthew and Rachel. He was a loving and supportive father. As a family man, he is remembered for his playful sense of humor and for his ability to inspire and encourage.
Hank began his career in underwriting at Northwestern Mutual in 1970. He also worked for Manulife, Lincoln National Re and ExamOne before starting his own underwriting consulting and training business in 2002.
A selfless proponent of the industry and the relationship between underwriting and distribution, Hank gave literally thousands of speeches, many at conferences organized by the Society of Actuaries. He was featured twice at the Million Dollar Round Table from the main stage. He was a past president of the Home Office Life Underwriters Association (HOLUA) and the creator of several underwriting study groups. In recognition of his many contributions to the underwriting field, Hank was a recipient of the Academy of Life Underwriting Outstanding Achievement Award and was inducted into the AHOU Hall of Fame.
During his career Hank published more than 550 research papers and articles, including many for Broker World. He authored two books: Getting it Issued (co-authored with John Krinik), and Underwriting: What Every Producer Must Know to increase and enhance the productivity of the agent/underwriter relationship. He founded the underwriting journal On The Risk as well as the Internal Underwriting Congress and the e-newsletter Hot Notes. Hot Notes was a beloved project of Hank’s and he poured his heart into it, producing more than 23 volumes, but unfortunately with his passing it will be discontinued. The National Association of Independent Life Brokerage Agencies (NAILBA) is in his debt for authoring their Field Underwriting Guide.
Outside of work, Hank was a film enthusiast and regularly published movie reviews in Hot Notes. He was also deeply interested in politics and spirituality, and a die-hard fan of the Packers, Brewers, Badgers and Bucks.
Family, friends and colleagues knew Hank as a generous person who was quick to lend a hand to those in need. Hank actively looked for opportunities to build others up and was a mentor to many in his field. His dedication to his profession, family and friends was an inspiration to those who knew him best.
I only met Hank a few times at various conferences, but even in casual conversation his passion for the industry was clear. Few people, if any, in this industry have had a more profound and prolonged impact on how life insurers and the brokerage industry as a whole sees mortality and morbidity risk and how that shared knowledge can truly benefit all stakeholders and ultimately the consumers and families we strive to protect. We lost a really good one.[SPH]
