T-15 days until Christmas! I’ll try and take your mind off of your #GiftAnxiety for a few minutes.
My name is Courtney Howrigon, Personal Lines Account Executive at Ron Jackson Insurance. I am taking over the YAC’s social media this month!
A little about my journey…
I grew up in a small town called Plainwell, MI – we are about 20 miles north of Kalamazoo (yes, there really is a Kalamazoo!). Where are all my #WestSide agents?! I went to Plainwell High School, home of the Trojans, and graduated in 2007. From there, I studied at KVCC and transferred to Western Michigan University (Go Broncos!), where I graduated with a Biology/Chemistry degree in the winter of 2012. While I am a Bronco Alum, I only attended one, maybe two football games during my college career – our rival school, CMU! I became a licensed P&C agent three months after I walked the WMU stage!
My family…
I have two young daughters: Harper is six and Haidyn is three. Yes - they do keep me busy! Harper is my independent, rule follower; she has an old soul vibe. And then there’s Haidyn - exactly the opposite. Typical first and second child stuff. They are my world. In the winter, you will find us building blanket forts and watching movies, and in the summer, we are on the pontoon at Pine Lake and frequenting the Kalamazoo Growlers games. My parents are high school sweethearts that graduated from Otsego High School in 1985 – dad is an engineer and mom is a photographer in the Plainwell area. My brother played football at K College, just completed Navy Bootcamp, and is working towards being a Navy SEAL (Hooyah!). My sister played basketball at Siena Heights University and is now the head women’s basketball coach at Lawrence Tech University (GO BLUE DEVILS!).
How did I get here??...
Growing up on Hicks Ave, in Plainwell, I lived next to my current boss, AKA RJA President. I babysat her kids and our parents are good friends, so the relationship was natural. Towards the end of my high school career, I was looking for a part time job, which landed me the receptionist position in our Plainwell location. I quickly learned the “language” and fell in LOVE with it. In 2008, we parted ways and I continued my college career and restaurant job. Fast forward to graduating as a Bronco and I was trying to get back into insurance. I was applying at the big companies, but I didn’t have the experience required. Because of the relationship I had with the Jackson’s, they quickly caught wind and asked me to come back. I was licensed a few months later and the rest is history!
Why YAC?...
Although I’ve been on the committee for just over a year, I’ve been tagging along to YAC events for years. My predecessor, Adam Jackson, was on the committee for six years before I joined. My first YAC conference was Frankenmuth in 2015. My favorite part was the bar crawl—I mean, all of the education! In all seriousness, YAC is more than just a committee; the group provides a broad scope of becoming a well-rounded member of the MAIA:
- Building relationships: continue RJA’s connection within MAIA, young agents in Michigan, insurance companies, vendors, and students of the industry
- Personal growth: public speaking, collaborating without judgement, accountability, and friendships
- Professional growth: industry connections, being a leader and role model for young people considering this career
- Education: learning more about what happens at a higher level in our industry – MAIA/DIFS, etc..
- Legislation: being more involved in our industry advocacy and legislative involvement
- Charitable giving: this year is Ele’s Place! I am so excited for this – you will learn more as we get closer to conference
YAC is all of these things and MORE. Please join us at some of our events this year! Check out and follow our website and our social media accounts, Instagram & Facebook, for the quickest up-to-date information!
As the wise Terminator once said, “I’ll be back”…
…to show you “A day in the life”, from my perspective!