75 years strong
Seventy-five years, six locations, three family members and thousands of clients later, the agency,
The company will celebrate its 75th anniversary with its clients Saturday night at
"We want to celebrate our customers. At the end of the day, that's what we're really celebrating. We're celebrating the fact that we have been able to be a part of this community for 75 years, to be what we feel is a significant part of the community," said
If anything else has remained consistent throughout the agency's history, it's the Kellers themselves. Brothers Doug and
But, nearly 50 years of history precede their arrival at the company.
In 1948, Myers said, Harold built what would become Keller Leopold's headquarters for more than 40 years: a building on
In 1953,
Eric said clients or former clients often tell him about his dad, how he encouraged them to start their business or branch out on their own.
"To be able to come in here and build on top of the foundation that my dad worked and Harold worked so hard to build ... is really humbling and a real blessing..." Eric said. "My dad was an extremely optimistic person. He was an extremely positive person, and he loved the insurance business. And I think coming to work in a place where people come in and share those types of stories ... it's just really amazing. You get in your car when you're leaving (and think) 'Wow. It's pretty cool that pops was instrumental in encouraging them.'"
Doug and Eric both became involved in the company in the 1990s, several years after it moved to its current address on
That year, the firm kicked off an era of significant expansion in west and southwest
The
Today, most of the agency's partners aren't Kellers, and the firm's 40 employees serve about 6,700 clients across its six locations through personal, commercial, farm and business insurance, including life insurance and group benefits, Novack said.
Today, owned by Doug and
In some ways, the clients are as ingrained in the company's history as anything else. Several families have been covered by Keller Leopold for generations, Myers said, and Eric said some individuals have worked with the company for decades. One man, now in his 80s, used to buy insurance from Eric's great uncle, Harold, he said.
"Instead of just a business transaction, you really get the opportunity to develop a relationship when you work with people for 10, 15, 20 years," Eric said.
Those relationships span out into the community, as well, Eric said. Taking a note from their father, who, like his uncle, was involved with the Knights of
The company has donated to the
"Doug and I, and I think our office, was just raised with a belief that if you've been blessed like we have, it's important to give back. It's important to support these things in your community ... Your community is only as strong as we're willing to make it," Eric said.
Eric said it was possible for a fourth generation of Kellers to take the torch from he and his brother; both he and Doug have sons, he said, but they are either still in school or involved in other fields at the moment.
In the meantime, though, both Kellers and their fleet of coworkers will continue to serve the community by protecting what matters to its residents.
Contact
___
(c)2018 The Garden City Telegram (Garden City, Kan.)
Visit The Garden City Telegram (Garden City, Kan.) at www.gctelegram.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Residents seek insurance coverage answers
Anti-Venom Market: High Prevalence of Snake Bites to Drive the Demand
Advisor News
Annuity News
Health/Employee Benefits News
Life Insurance News