VOTE NOW: TBJ’s 10th Annual Best of Central Valley Business Awards

The Business Journal’s 10th Annual Best of Central Valley Business Awards are open and D&D is honored to be nominated in two categories this year!

Nominated for Best Company to Work For and Best Property & Casualty Insurance Company (for the 10th year in a row!), we’d very much appreciate your vote!

Voting closes on October 31, cast your vote with the link here. We are grateful for your continuous support.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/XRJTTRK

Fresno Office: Flu Shot Update

There is a change to our annual onsite flu shot program.  Unfortunately, our previous provider of this service is no longer able to offer on-site flu shots this year.

However, we encourage all employees to prioritize their health during the upcoming flu season.  Employees/dependents covered under Aetna can receive the flu shot at no cost through any in-network pharmacy or doctor.  Kaiser employees/dependents need to go to Kaiser.

We appreciate your understanding as we adapt to this change!

Fresno Office: Welcome, Gabriela Figueroa to our Loss Control Department

Please welcome Gabriela Figueroa as the newest Loss Control Consultant to our Fresno Loss Control Department.

Gaby brings with her an air of fresh enthusiasm as she embarks on this new journey in the insurance industry.  She has a passion for road trips, easy hikes, cooking, and is a self-proclaimed foodie.  Gaby confesses her travel itineraries often weave in all things food-related.   When not working, Gaby puts her Notary skills to good use by helping the community with document notarization. 

Welcome Gaby to D&D!

Congratulations, Rene Sanchez on VP of P&C Marketing Promotion!

Good morning everyone.

I am pleased to announce the promotion of Rene Sanchez to Vice President of P&C Marketing. In this capacity, he will be responsible for managing the P&C marketing team and utilizing his extensive experience in the overall restructuring of the commercial marketing department.

Rene will be replacing Dirk Seltzer, who will be assuming a new role in the marketing department focused on difficult risk placements. We thank Dirk for his dedication to our Agency and for his work to build the marketing department over the last two decades. We look forward to continuing to work closely with Dirk in his new role.

Please join me in congratulating Rene on his promotion.

-Matt DeFendis

Fresno Office: 4th of July Luncheon!

Please join us for a 4th of July luncheon on Monday, July 3rd in the Main Kitchen

Lunch will be pizza and salad from DiCicco’s. We will have Raffle Prizes and you will receive a raffle ticket at the door. You must be present to win.

We hope to see you there!

UPDATE – Personal Lines Staffing & Primary Backup

Good morning,

Sharing few updates…

We added a new member to the Personal Lines team back on March 13, 2023.  Her name is Ronica Mireles and she is based out of our Lodi office part-time and remote part-time.  For the folks in Fresno, if you didn’t get a chance to say “hi” when she was in Fresno, she will be back to the office to continue her training and education.  Please take some time and extend a warm welcome.

With the addition of Ronica, we’re also making some changes to the “Back-up Pairings”. 

  • Lynda Castillo (Fresno) will now be paired with Valerie Arteaga (Oxnard/SLO)
  • Vivian Gallegos (Bakersfield) will now be paired with Kathy Devine Streich (Taft)

You will note, Anita will continue to backup Shannon and we’re adding in Ronica.  Anita White has been asked and accepted a leadership role in the Personal Lines department as Team Leader, which includes onboarding/mentoring Ronica.

Special “THANK YOU” to Anita.  Without her support, kindness, generosity, and unlimited amount of patience, I could not do what I need to do.

Also, thank you to ALL OF YOU for all your support and managing the growing pains.  A lot has been accomplished with much more to be done but very happy to say we have a blueprint. 

With gratitude,

Sue S. Long
Vice President of Personal Lines/Chief Operating Officer

Exciting Medicare News

Last week Executives from Blue Shield were here to recognize D&D as their top Medicare Producer for Northern California. This is a great honor and we want to recognize Catherine Lumsden and Linda Hoang-Chao for their tireless work in this area. Thank you very much ladies for your incredible work. Hope everyone has a great weekend.

Thank you.

Matthew DeFendis