Hello Fellow NAIFA Member,
We hope that you have
marked your calendar for this years NAIFA-ND State Convention in Minot, ND at
the International Inn.
Be sure to take advantage of the "Early
Registration Incentive" by signing up before March 31st. Those members that have
registered and paid will have their name drawn for a 26 inch HDTV flat screen
TV. Simply click on "Register Here" in the left column to signup now!
Come and flock together with other "Eagles" and enjoy a time of
entertainment, relaxation, and motivation.
Thank
you,
Convention Committee
Here is our current
lineup of speakers.
NAIFA Convention Speakers
D. Scott Brennan
Court of the Table and Top of the Table - MDRT
D. Scott Brennan, of South Bend, Indiana is a graduate of Indiana University. He has been a speaker at eight MDRT meetings. He is a member of The Quarter Century Club with past qualifications for Court of the Table and Top of the Table. Brennan twice served as MDRT Divisional Vice President and five times as a Committee Chair. He was named Hoosier Life Underwriter of the year in 1998 by the Indiana Association. Brennan is a member of the Association of Advanced Life Underwriting, and is a past President of The International Forum.He has served his community as a past president of the following organizations: St. Anthony’s Parish Council (three times) and chaired the 1995 capital campaign for the school, and the 1998 capital campaign for the Church; The Downtown South Bend Rotary Club; The Scholarship Foundation of St. Joseph County; Morris Park Country Club; the Indiana University Alumni Club of St. Joseph County; and Beta Alpha Delt Scholars Foundation.
Brennan currently serves on the Board of Directors of The South Bend Symphony Orchestra, and Our Lady of Peace Hospital.
Scotty has been married to his wonderful wife, Robin, for 24 years. They are the proud parents of two adult daughters.
Adam Hamm
ND Insurance Commissioner
Adam W. Hamm was appointed Insurance Commissioner by
Governor John Hoeven in October 2007. Hamm brings a strong and varied background
to the office that includes experience both in public service and in the private
sector.
Hamm's dedication and desire to serve the public was in part
born out of his experiences at the Cass County State's Attorney's office. Hamm
worked on the personal crimes team which prosecutes, among other things, murder,
rape, robbery, assault, and child physical and sexual abuse. Seeking justice for
victims and their families gave Hamm a special appreciation for public service
and a keen insight into what it takes to protect the public.
Among the
cases he handled during his time as a prosecutor was the prosecution of Kyle
Bell for the murder of Jeanna North, an 11-year-old Fargo girl. This case
ultimately resulted in a life sentence for Bell, but just as importantly,
prompted the enactment of tougher laws against sex offenders in North Dakota.
Hamm has also worked as an attorney in private practice advocating for
North Dakota businesses and individuals. He specialized in a number of areas,
including commercial litigation, administrative agency law and transportation
law.
Hamm, 36, is a graduate of Sam Houston State
University and received his Juris Doctorate Degree, with Distinction, from the
University of North Dakota School of Law in 1998. He is a member of the State
Bar Associations of North Dakota and Minnesota, and the Cass County Bar
Association. Hamm is also a member of the Governor's Task Force on Violent and
Sexual Offenders. Within the community, Hamm served for the last four years on
the New Member Development Committee of the Home Builders Association of
Fargo-Moorhead, most recently as its Vice-Chair.
A native of Jamestown,
North Dakota, Commissioner Hamm has lived and worked in the Fargo area since
1998. He is currently in the process of relocating to Bismarck.
Motivational Speaker
Dr. Bob Edwards, Psychologist, Family
Therapist
Dr. Bob Edwards is a native of the south. He came to
Minot, North Dakota to direct the ministry of the Samaritan Counseling
Center/Trinity Mental Health. He served as the director for seven
years. He is currently the Senior Pastor at First Presbyterian
Church. He has served in the military, has been a corporate vice president
for marketing, established many Christ based therapy programs, served as a
psychiatric chaplain and private therapist, and is a proud survivor of fourteen
North Dakota winters.
He was named Healthcare Provider of the
Year, Region II North Dakota in 1998 and was received into the Who's Who for
Public Speaking. He is a devoted pet lover, a singer, author, lecturer,
humorist, radio talk show host, and the proud father of five precious children,
most recently a set of twins who are six years old..
Dr. Edwards
holds a doctorate in psychology and counseling, is a certified suicide
specialist, state licensed therapist, and is a nationally certified marriage and
family therapist. Welcome, from the south (now a
Minotian).
Breakout Speaker
Jim Johnson, CLU, ChFC, MSFS
Brokerage Director - Hallett
Financial
Born and raised in North Dakota, Jim has been active in the financial services industry for the past 28 years. During his career, he has worn a variety of hats beginning as an Agent and later as a General Agent for Mass Mutual. In 1986, he joined the home office of Western States Life as Director of Business Development and later became the Director of Training and Advanced Markets. In his current role as the Brokerage Director for Hallett Financial Group, Jim helps support the advanced cases and product needs of financial service professionals throughout the Midwest.
Jim has been a speaker
and CE instructor at hundreds of events throughout his career.
He is an
active member of NAIFA and the Red River Valley Estate Planning Council.
He
is a past president of the Red River Valley chapter of CLU’s and ChFC’s.
He served on the NAIC model illustrations task force and was a member of LIMRA’s
advanced markets group.
Jim is an active member in his community; he is the past President and a current member of the Fargo School Board. He is the past President and a current board member of Churches United for the Homeless. He has served on the board of directors for Pine to Prairie Girl Scout Council, Coalition for Disabled Persons of North Dakota, Northern Lights Boy Scout Council, and the distribution committee of United Way of Cass-Clay.
He is the Chairperson of the Support and Endowment Committee at First Presbyterian Church. Jim and his wife Kay are blessed with two delightful daughters, Robin and Emma.
Breakout Speaker
Rick Darvis, CPA, CCPS
Certified College Planning Specialist
Rick is recognized as one of the leading experts in the college funding field. He has written more books, developed more software, and trained more financial professionals on the topic of college funding than any other person in the
He has been a featured speaker at the Financial Planner Association's National Success Forum, the Northeast /Mid-Atlantic National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA) regional conference, National Employee Benefit Forum, the New York Society of CPAs Personal Financial Planning Conference, and at Joe Hurley's 529 Plan conferences.
Rick has been quoted in:
Forbes, CNN-FN,
Breakout Speaker
Jonathan Spilde
LTC Specialist
SIA Marketing
Jonathan began his career in the insurance business
in 1981, and has specialized in LTCI since 1983. He joined SIA as
Marketing Director in 1987, becoming a Partner in 1989. He currently
oversees a network of agents and general agents numbering more than 8000 located
all across the US.
He was a Legislative Committee member for the ND Health Task Force on LTC Planning, as well as the ND State LTC Partnership Advisory Committee. He was a featured speaker at NAHU’s First Annual LTC Producer’s Conference, and a contributing author to S. Larry Feldman’s When Caring Isn’t Enough, published by the MDRT Center for Productivity. He also serves on the Governing Board of the Missouri Slope Lutheran Care Center and Valley View Heights Assisted Living, and is a longtime board member of MSAIFA.
Jonathan and his wife Laurie reside in
Bismarck with their 2 children—Kaiya , 18, and Coleman, 13.
Breakout
Speaker
Scott D. Gunderson,
CFP
Vice-President John Hancock Annuities
Scott graduated from St. Mary’s Central High in 1988 and went on to attend the University of North Dakota. After graduating with a bachelors degree from the college of business at UND in 1993 and passing his general securities exam series 7 and 63 he started a financial planning practice in Spooner, WI. In 1997 Scott moved his financial planning practice from Spooner, WI to Alexandria, MN. In that same year he received the Certified Financial Planner designation.
In the year 2000 after successfully building his practice and asset under management to over $50 million Scott decided on a different challenge and went into wholesaling financial products designed to provide principle and income protection for millions.
Scott regularly speaks to groups about the upcoming “Income Crisis” and the shift from asset accumulation to asset distribution.
Scott and Tracy (wife) live in Grand Forks, ND with two daughters, Haidyn (7) and Jalynn (3).
National Committeeman -
ND
Dave Klemisch,
LUTCF
Company Honors:
Promoted to Unit Manager in 1988: District Manager in 1990
General Agent in 1997 and Area Manager in 2002
Life Conference Member in both Personal Production and Management.
North Dakota's "Top Sales Associate" in 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, and 2002
Region "Associate of the Year" 1997.
US National "Associate of the Month" April 1993 - American General
US National "New Associate of the Month" - December, 1987.
Compass Division "Agency Manager of the Year" 1997 - 2007
Association Honors:
Elected President of the Fargo-Moorhead NAIFA 1996 and again in 2003.
Named Fargo-Moorhead Life Underwriter of the Year - 1997
Elected president of NAIFA-ND - 2000
Elected National Committteeman NAIFA-ND - 2007
NAIFA-ND Recruiter of the year - 2003-2004
North Dakota Agent of the year - 2004
Served as State Membership Chair '95-96, '00-01, '04-05
Industry Honors:
National Sales Achievement Award
National Quality Award - 14 times
MDRT - Court of the Table 2008
Certified Instructor for ND Licensing schools 9 years - Educational Resources
Banquet
Speaker
Major Jay Block,
USAF
Chief, Quality Assurance for the 91st Maint.
Group
Major Jay Block was born November 9, 1970, in
Manchester, NH. He attended school in Manchester and graduated from John Stark
Regional High School in Weare, NH in 1989. After graduation, Major Block
enlisted in the Air Force Reserve and attended basic Training at Lackland AFB,
TX, and technical training at Keesler AFB, MS. In November 1989, Major Block was
assigned to the 439th Military Airlift Wing, Westover AFB, MA. In 1990, Major
Block transferred into the 119th Fighter Interceptor Wing, North Dakota Air
National Guard, Fargo, ND.
Major Block graduated from North Dakota State
University in Fargo, North Dakota, in 1995 and received his commission through
the Reserve Officer Training Corps. In June 1995, he was first assigned to
the 91st Missile Wing at Minot AFB, ND, where he served in the 91st Maintenance
Squadron as Assistant Flight Commander, Accessories Flight.
In October 1996, he was reassigned to the 5th Space Launch
Squadron, Cape Canaveral Air Station, FL, as Facilities Maintenance Officer for
Titan Integrated Launch Facilities and Titan Space Launch
Complex-40.
In April 1998, Major Block was selected to career broaden into space and missile operations and reported to the 392nd Training Squadron at Vandenberg AFB, CA, for Undergraduate Space and Missile Training and Missile Initial Qualification Training (IQT).
After graduating from IQT in October 1996, the
Major was assigned to the 12th Missile Squadron, Malmstrom AFB, MT, as Deputy
Missile Combat Crew Commander and Missile Combat Crew Commander. In January
2001, he was selected to test launch the Minuteman III (MMIII) Intercontinental
Ballistic Missile (ICBM) at Vandenberg AFB,
CA
Click here to read more of his bio.