Views (November 01, 2005)

The 11th Annual Crawford Adjusters Canada Charity Golf Tournament was once again a super success, raising over $10,000 for the Women in Insurance Cancer Crusade (WICC) through the Company’s charity, Crawford Cares. The event was filled with a group of spirited Crawford clients and employees who reveled under sunny skies at the Royal Ontario Golf Club. After the tournament dinner Crawford’s ceo Glenn Gibson presented a $25,000 cheque WICC board of directors member Jean Faulkner. The cheque represents a “down payment” on the annual fundraising campaign and represents a portion of the amount raised by Crawford’s employees over the past year through payroll deductions and fundraisers and a portion of the funds raised from the day’s golf tournament. “At Crawford, the bad news is we have lost several employees to cancer over the years. But a number of employees are battling the disease as we speak, and they are encouraged by our employees who have successfully beaten cancer,” Gibson said. “Organizations like WICC make more and more success stories possible every year.”

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Built to help raise funds for fighting blood-related cancers by bike builder Dave Perewitz in collaboration with fundraiser co-sponsors PPG Automotive Refinish and Ray Evernham of NASCAR’s Evernham Motorsports, the custom-built “Charity Chopper” motorcycle is up for auction on eBay Motors. The Perewitz creation is a custom Pro-street V-twin chopper featuring a Liquid Crystal O-So-Orange paint finish from the PPG Vibrance Collection and classic Perewitz flames. Adding to its uniqueness and collectible value is the fact that many NASCAR celebrities have signed the custom chopper, including Ray Evernham, Jeremy Mayfield, Dale Earnhardt, Jr., Rusty Wallace, Tony Stewart and Kasey Kahne. Other chopper features include a 121 cu. in. TP Engineering engine, a 6-speed Baker RSD transmission, Weld Racing wheels, Danny Gray custom seat and an Avon Venom 300 series rear tire. The Charity Chopper is a unique and worthwhile item for auction as its style, power and performance is matched by the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s great cause. All proceeds from the auction will benefit The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. In light of the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, which damaged treatment centers and displaced patients from their regular treatment providers, The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society will direct the proceeds of the auction to address the needs of blood cancer patients in the Gulf Coast region.

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The stars shone over Toa Reinsurance Company’s annual Fall Function festivities at Toronto’s Sheraton Hotel as clients and business partners were welcomed by Toa’s chief agent in Canada David Wilmot and entertained by the cool crooning of none other than Rod Stewart and Bete Midler… impersonators. Tasty Japanese tidbits and tremendous insurance musings rounded out the evenings entertainment.

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Odyssey Reinsurance Co. of Canada president Bob Ysseldyk and his staff welcomed guests to their table to partake in A King’s Feast at Toronto’s only castle, Casa Loma. The reception welcomed clients, business partners and guests and offered them a glimpse into the regal life and a taste of truly royal tidbits.

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Transatlantic Reinsurance marked its 25th Anniversary with a stylish soiree celebrating its ‘ages’ alongside the evolution of one of Canada’s favorite past-times – Hockey. Guests “played” NHL star and wandered through exhibits, catching a glimpse of Canadian hockey heroes at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto while they toasted to good eats and great treats in acknowledgment of Transatlantic’s 25 years in Canada.

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Downtown Montreal’s cobblestone streets were graced with the fast feet of 53 runners and walkers at Perspective 2005’s second annual William H. McGannon Foundation 5K Fun Run/Walk. The run, once again organized by the energetic Joe Hardy and sponsored by FM Global, raised $1,760. FM Global matched the figure to reach a total donation of $3,500. An additional charitable donation was honored by the McGannon Foundation’s when the organizations president Joe Restoule accepted a cheque from ORIMS treasurer Roman Parzei for $5,540 from ORIMS at a ceremony during Percpective 2005. The donation was raised from the June 28, 2005 ORIMS Annual Golf Tournament at Kleinburg Golf and Country Club in Kleinburg, Ontario – a sold out event. In line with the foundation’s objectives for 2005, a new endeavor supporting the Junior Achievement organization has been initiated with the intent to bolster the risk management profession as a viable career move for Canadian students. The foundation aims to raise donations of $100,000 for the 2005 calendar year and have $400,000 in equity by June 30, 2006.

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The house was full at the RIMS Canada Conference Perspective 2005’s awards luncheon, sponsored by Lloyds, which recognizes the need for professional advancement and the elevation of the risk management profession through education. The ceremony acknowledged Joe Restoule, president of the McGannon Foundation, for the organizations $300,000 surplus, which resulted from the generous donations received over the past 2.5 years. Running to the awards functions spotlight was the “Spencer Foundation Fun Run,” organized by Joe Hardy and sponsored by FM Global, which raised $1,780 for the foundation. The ceremony gave the foundation’s ‘perpetual donors’ special thanks and acknowledged additional donors including: ORIMS AGM Golf Tournament’s $5,200 donation; Agnew Higgins Pickering lunchtime donation of $5,000; and, SARIMS donation of $19,200. Jim Swanson, chair of the National Education Committee, announced that the 2005 Fred Bosson award winner, a senior officer with the Canadian military (Dept. of National Defense), was grateful for the award but requested to remain ‘anonymous.’ This years Bosson recipient also explained, through Swanson, that he could not accept the $500 cash prize and would instead donate the funds to the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Society. The awards stage was further graced by Nancy Chambers as Niver Rubenyan, current ORIMS president presented, awarded her with the distinguished Don Stuart Award – the highest symbol of achievement of risk management in Canada. With an overwhelming 16 letters of support for the nomination, an emotional Chambers addressed the audience with gratitude for the honor and privilege she received by being able to spend time with Don Stuart. Chamber’s official nomination was completed by her colleague and friend Heather Pearson.

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The RIMS Canada Council is moving full speed ahead with its plans to enhance the profile of risk management in Canada and has added another perspective to its “awareness agenda” – the concerns of individual members. The council has initiated a new strategy that will secure member feedback and has heightened its focus on RIMS Canada’s internal operations and offerings. The Committee has also begun a new initiative to review the RIMS Canada Conference’s program, duration and provide surveys to garner opinions. The chair of the national conference committee, Mike Maida says the council is set to roll out a survey directly after the conference and thereafter e-mail it to all the Canadian RIMS delegate members and previous conference attendees. Chair of national education Jim Swanson says RIMS is additionally working on a plan that will improve accessibility to professional development for members across the country. Recently, RIMS Canada became involved with the board of the Insurance Institute of America texts. This partnership gives RIMS Canada the opportunity to offer some input into the “outdated” texts that provide the material to Canada’s insurance students. New to the educational arena is RIMS Canada’s partnership with the McGannon foundation. Also on its agenda, the Canada Council plans to increase its communication initiatives to the organized public and private sectors across Canada.Swanson said that in order for membership to multiply the council will have to increase the recognition of risk managers
. The council is moving to multiply its numbers by visiting chapters and identifying what membership needs are. Communications chair Lance Kayfish says the council is also putting together a program to increase the general awareness of risk management and its value among business leaders.

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PPG Canada Inc., through CertifiedFirst Network sponsorship, is supporting the Holy Trinity Catholic High School in Simcoe, ON in the annual Baja 1000 Race. This will be the second consecutive year that PPG has, in support of the CertifiedFirst Network, funded students who will gain valuable real-world experience by building their own vehicle for the race. “We hope our involvement will help provide students the hands-on experience in a dynamic learning environment needed to enhance their employment skills and career opportunities in the future,” Keith Burns, manager Insurance Relations & CertifiedFirst Network for PPG Canada, says. The Baja 1000 is an off road race held in Mexico each November. The race, which begins in Ensenada, Mexico, will take place over four days and ends in the small town of La Paz, Mexico, 1,000 miles later. After the race to the finish line, a travelling pit crew will continue to promote skilled trades to high school students and professional tradeshows throughout Canada.

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In response to Canadian Underwriter’s October web poll, which asked the question – “Do you believe the impact of Hurricane Katrina on the pricing environment of the insurance market will lead to a hard pricing market or do you believe the impact is containable – with claims hitting the earnings not the capital of most reinsurers and insurers – leading to a short-lived hard market effect that will renew interest in catastrophe lines of insurance?” – over three quarters of respondents say that in a post Katrina environment, the insurance market will see hard pricing but only for a short period of time. Heavily weighting the scale, 80.10% of members from the insurance industry say the short-lived hard market will renew interest in catastrophe lines of insurance while a meager 19.90% say Katrina will lead to a prolonged hard market.

RESULTS OF THE TOTAL 191 RESPONDENTS

Short-Lived 80.10% Prolonged 19.90%