ALEXANDRIA, Va., Sept. 27, 2010 — J. Michael “Mike” Miley has been inaugurated as the new chairman of the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of America (IIABA or the Big “I”), with Mike Donohoe as chairman elect, Bobby Bramlett as vice chairman and Randy Lanoix as the new executive committee member. The new officers began their terms at the conclusion of the Big “I” Leadership Conference this weekend in San Francisco.
“The Big ‘I’ is proud to announce that such remarkable and top professionals in our industry will be heading the Big ‘I’ executive committee,” says Robert Rusbuldt, Big “I” president &CEO. “Mike Miley, Mike Donohoe, Bobby Bramlett and Randy Lanoix, along with the rest of the executive committee, are a top notch team that is sure to result in a productive year.”
J. Michael “Mike” Miley began his insurance career in 1973 and joined the Gibson Insurance Group in 1983. In 1978 he joined the Marshall-Fulton-Starke Counties Independent Insurance Agents Association and went on to serve as president. He served on numerous committees for the Independent Insurance Agents of Indiana (IIAI). In 1992, he was elected to the IIAI executive committee and served as president in 1995. Miley was elected as Indiana’s representative on the Big “I” national board of directors in 1997. His numerous awards include: the 1987 Chairman of the Year award for his work on the new products and services committee, Indiana Agent of the Year Award in 1989 and 2006, Honorary Commissioner of Insurance in 1990 and the 1991 Harry P. Cooper Public Image Award. In addition to serving on numerous Big “I” committees, he has been active with the United Way of Marshall County, the local Chamber of Commerce, the Marshall County Mental Health Association, Marshall County Older Adult Services and the Plymouth Board of Parks and Recreation. Miley lives in Plymouth, Ind., with his wife, Cindy, and their two children, Margaret and Matthew.
Mike Donohoe is owner and agent of the James R. Weir Insurance Agency in Mankato, Minn. He was elected to the Big “I” Executive Committee in September 2006. Donohoe has contributed to the independent agency system in a variety of ways, including serving the Minnesota Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers (MIIAB) as its president and as its representative on the Big “I” national board of directors. He was named Minnesota “Young Agent of the Year” in 1979 and 1981. Donohoe, who has been instrumental to the success of the Big “I” Virtual University, served as the chair of the VU Oversight Task Force from 2001 to 2006. In 2005, he received the Woodworth Memorial, the highest honor the Big “I” awards to an agent. Donohoe grew up in Lake Forest, Ill., and is a graduate of St. Mary’s College, in Winona, Minn. He has been married to his wife Mary for more than 30 years and they have four children: Katie, Gina, Meghan and Patrick.
Bobby Bramlett is president &CEO of the Bramlett Agency in Ardmore, Okla. He began his career in the insurance industry by joining his parents’ agency in 1975, purchased the agency in 1982 upon his parent’s retirement and continues his family’s 61 year legacy. He was elected twice as president of Independent Insurance Agents of Oklahoma (IIAO) and currently serves as past chairman of the young agents of IIAO, on the IIAO board of directors, and is the co-chair of the building campaign. He has also chaired the InsurPAC committee for several years. Bramlett is the current Oklahoma representative on the Big “I” national board of directors and has served two terms on the InsurPAC board of trustees. He is the chairman of several committees, including: state government affairs committee, agents advocacy fund and the Trusted Choice® Big “I” Junior Classic. Bramlett earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Oklahoma. Bramlett and his wife, Nanette, have one son, Jake, and are active in their community.
Randy Lanoix is president of Lanoix Insurance Agency in Lutcher and Brusly, La. Lanoix has been active in the independent agency system, serving as president of the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of Louisiana (IIABL) in 2001 and as the Louisiana representative on the Big “I” national board of directors from January 2005 to September 2010. He recently received the Lou Daniel award, the highest honor bestowed by the IIABL. Lanoix is also a past recipient of the “Mr. Chairman” award for his work as Louisiana’s legislative chairman and his work with the Louisiana state legislature. On the national level, Lanoix has served on the professional liability committee, the Trusted Choice® board of directors, numerous task forces, and two terms on the government affairs committee, where he was chairman of state government affairs. He has been married to his wife Nell for more than 32 years and they have two boys, Bryan and David, who work in the family agency alongside their dad.
The 2009-2010 chairman, J. David Daniel, who will serve on the committee as immediate past chair for one year, is president of Daniel and Eustis Insurance in Baton Rouge, La.
Founded in 1896, the Big “I” is the nation’s oldest and largest national association of independent insurance agents and brokers, representing a network of more than 300,000 agents, brokers and their employees nationally. Its members are businesses that offer customers a choice of policies from a variety of insurance companies. Independent agents and brokers offer all lines of insurance—property, casualty, life, health, employee benefit plans and retirement products. Web address: www.independentagent.com.
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