'Outstanding salesman'; expert in insurance business
It was just two years ago that all 177 employees of Assurance in Schaumburg gathered at a holiday party to honor their founders, Jim Blackburn and Jerome Evan Powell.
The party came just two months after the company had moved into the large high-rise on Golf Road in Schaumburg, just west of the Woodfield Hyatt hotel, and negotiated for its naming rights.
Its employees filled most of the top four floors of the 12-story building. The company is one of the largest, privately held insurance brokerages in the Midwest and ranks among the top 100 in the nation, according to Business Insurance magazine.
"It was kind of a chance to say, 'Wow, look how far we've come,' " says Steven Handmaker, communications vice president. "We really wanted to honor them, and now we're glad we did. At least we had that opportunity to pay tribute for all that they did."
Assurance employees were saddened this month to learn of Mr. Powell's passing. He died Nov. 17 in Rancho Mirage, Calif. The former Inverness resident, most recently of Barrington, was 72.
Mr. Powell joined Blackburn in 1963, in the fledgling insurance brokerage, which he had started in 1961, in his Arlington Heights home. Before long, the partners moved to an office in Arlington Heights, and later Rolling Meadows, before settling in 2005 in Schaumburg.
"He was an expert in life insurance," Blackburn says. "In the beginning, he handled that end of the business for me, and then added property and casualty. But for estate planning, he was one of the best."
His colleagues concurred.
"Jerry was an outstanding salesman," Handmaker says. "He understood the insurance business, and how pairing the right coverage with a company's interests, not only minimized its risk but spurred on the growth of its business."
Mr. Powell grew up in Pittsburgh, where his father worked for Firestone.
In college, he majored in business at the University of Dayton, and after graduation accepted a job managing a tire store in Pittsburgh.
He moved into sales, and the insurance industry, when he landed a job with Signal, which ultimately brought him to Chicago.
"Jerry just loves sales," says his wife, Maggie, whom he met in Barrington and married in 1985. "He's always enjoyed people and made many contacts wherever he's gone."
Beyond the insurance industry, Mr. Powell had a wide network of friends through his involvement in golf, at both the Inverness Country Club, where he served as president, and at Avondale Country Club in Palm Desert, Calif., where he and his wife enjoyed winters since he retired in 2002.
Besides his wife, survivors include daughters Lisa (Tom) Hoffman of Columbus, Ohio, Judith (Liz King) Powell of San Francisco and Amy (Steve Jenkins) Powell of Denver, Colo.; sons William "Bill" (Darlene) Powell of Barrington, Lance (Brenda) Powell of Fox River Grove, William "Rennie" (Brooke) Renshaw of Barrington, John Renshaw of Barrington and Barrett (Rebecca) Renshaw of Cary.
Visitation for Mr. Powell will be from 3 to 8 p.m. Monday at Davenport Family Funeral Home, 149 W. Main St., Barrington. A 10 a.m. funeral Mass at St. Anne Church, 120 Ela St. in Barrington, will be Tuesday.