Arkansas Insurance Hall of Fame Announces Inaugural Class Of Eight Inductees

The Arkansas Insurance Hall of Fame (AIHF) on Monday announced its first class of eight inductees who will be honored at an inaugural ceremony in mid-October on the campus of the University of Central Arkansas.

The inaugural inductees are:

· Longtime Arkansas Department of Insurance Deputy Commissioner Lenita Blasingame of El Paso, Ark., who retired from the state insurance agency in June.

· Jay Bradford of First Arkansas Insurance In Pine Bluff. He is also the former State Insurance Commissioner, and served in the Arkansas General Assembly.

· George Frazier (posthumous), former owner of Anderson & Frazier Insurance Agency in Hope. He also served as the president of the Independent Insurance Agents of America in 1977.

· Robert Carl “Bob” Hickman (posthumous) of Hickman Insurance Agency in Little Rock.

· Tad Krug of BancorpSouth Insurance Services in Little Rock

· Allan E. Meadors of Meadors, Adams & Lee Insurance in Little Rock

· Walter “Jiggs” Ramsey of The ASA Group in Little Rock

· Steve Strange Sr. of Conway-based American Management Corp.

The newly created business hall of fame will be housed within the College of Business at the University of Central Arkansas. Its formation was led by Steve Russell, president of Risk Services of Arkansas, along with insurance executives from around the state.

The purpose of the Arkansas Insurance Hall of Fame is to identify and honor individuals with strong ties to the state of Arkansas who have made significant contributions to advance the role of insurance in society, officials said.

The selection criteria for the nominees to the newly created hall of fame must have must have achieved success in sales or in another functional area of insurance and risk management, have helped create or served as an officer of an agency or company or have been affiliated with the insurance and risk management industry in another capacity. Their careers must also a strong value system and a firm commitment of service to the community and state, organizers said.

The first class of inductees were chosen from all segments of the property/casualty insurance, life insurance, health insurance, risk management, and financial services industries, including agents, company employees, insurance regulators, and entrepreneurs who created companies and agencies.

UCA, the only university in Arkansas with an undergraduate degree program in insurance and risk management, was chosen as the host and beneficiary of the AIHF. The eight inductees will be honored at the inaugural ceremony at 6 p.m. on Oct. 15 in the Farris Center on the UCA campus.