2012 - February Newsletter.pub

EMPLOYEE NEWSLETTER OF ATLAS INSURANCE AGENCY
VOLUME 8, ISSUE 2
More than the sum of our parts...
FEBRUARY 2012
one atlas.
Seems so simple a mantra, but what does it really
mean? Why keep it around for a second year? Do
those two words truly define us?
1132 Bishop Street
Suite 1600
Honolulu, HI 96813
808-533-3222
Inside this issue:
Top 5 Agents
2
Smart, Eh!
2
Top 5 Agents for
2011
3
Atlas Welcomes
Peter Junker
4
Atlas HEART
5
Atlas Kick-Off
Meeting Pictures
6
Toastmasters Time 8
The History of
Valentine’s Day
9
Meet Your New
OAC Team
9
Atlas Calendar—
February 2012
10
The Final Word
10
from many other agents and employees.
one atlas.
Na Leo O’ Atlas
While our keynote speaker’s message
focused on communication, and the ‘meaning’ behind what we say, Colbert Matsumoto spent 35If you attended the 2012 Atlas Kick-Off Meeting at
minutes on stage answering questions about his
The Hawaii Theatre on January 19th, then you algrowing up on Lanai, going to Law School, learning
ready know the answers to these questions. We
from mentors, and running one of the largest comare ‘one atlas’ because we are more than the sum
panies in Hawaii. Greg Chilson from Atlas Profesof our parts. We cross our departmental boundasional Development served as moderator and kept
ries and interact, collaborate, help, share—
the conversation going by asking
together, as one. This concept conprobing follow-up questions to Colfused our keynote speaker, Keith
“I know that you
bert’s answers. This format proved
Kashiwada, but he talked himself
believe you understood both informative and engaging, and
through it.
the audience loved getting to know
what you think I said.
That was the underlying message
Colbert in a more personal way.
But I’m not sure you
during the 3-hour meeting—that
realize, what you heard Kathy Kano discussed some of what
working together, giving all we got
made our 2011 year so fun, with the
is not what I meant!”
to the team, for the team, we can
numerous activities and antics of the
accomplish great things together, as
Office Activities Committee. Kathy
-Keith Kashiwada,
one. The inspirational ‘one atlas’
followed her talk up with a video that
video featuring family photos of
keynote speaker
highlighted the fun in pictures.
employees and agents hit home and
hearts with many in attendance.
A review of last year’s numbers showed that we
were close to hitting the mark with our budgeted
‘Wow! What an outstanding kick-off meeting!’ was
revenue, but that having financial success is going
agent Ernie Uyetake’s response, ‘[and Martin did a]
to continue to take lots of hard work in 2012.
fabulous presentation as MC—it’s [his] calling, isn’t
Myles Murakami painted a positive picture on our
it!’
ability as an Atlas organization to beat our numbers
Speaking of Martin Beardeaux. He was apthis year.
proached a few months earlier and solicited to be
Thanks to all volunteers who helped make this
the MC because of his Atlas Toastmasters experievent so special. Pictures of our 2012 Kick-Off can
ence. That experiment appears to have proven
be found on Pages 6-7.
successful, as Ernie’s feedback mirrors feedback
Chenise Blalock Honored: Oh Say Can You
See by the Dawn’s Early Light
Chenise Blalock (Personal Lines) is all smiles with her Certificate of Appreciation for
being an ‘Americanism Patriotic Soloist’ from The Elks Club of Honolulu. Chenise
received the recognition for singing the National Anthem at a special ceremony at
their lodge to honor and remember the victims of September 11th. Chenise was
introduced to the lodge through an Elks member in her weekly networking group.
Great job Chenise, representing Atlas and your country!
NA LEO O’ ATLAS
Building a better business with sales acumen!
Mark Maruyama
Gerald Takeuchi
Scott LaRue
Min Sung Yang
Wayne Kinoshita
Building a better team through learning!
Leilani Mariano
Lei continues to blitz through her CPCU courses, having
knocked off her fourth course in 5-months, ‘Finance &
Accounting for Insurance Professionals’
Travis-Mitchell Ota
Travis took and passed his very first CISR course,
‘Insuring Commercial Casualty Exposures’
Vergenia Velasco
Gie took her third and final ARM course, ‘Risk Financing’
...and our newest Designee:
Vergenia Velasco
PAGE 2
Congratulations Gie on earning your Associates in Risk
Management (ARM) Designation! Great work!
VOLUME 8, ISSUE 2
Gerald
‘Michael
Phelps’
Takeuchi
Mark ‘Celebrate’
Maruyama
Scott ‘Hawaiian Superman’ LaRue
PAGE 3
NA LEO O’ ATLAS
Peter Junker, Account Executive
Welcome Peter! Come on down, you’re the next contestant on The
Price is Right!
OK, we’re not as exciting as an iconic game show, but as you witnessed first-hand Mr. Junker (pronounced ‘Yunker’) at this year’s kick
-off meeting, we do know how to have fun. We get the feeling you
do too, so you’re going to fit in very nicely young man, very nicely
indeed.
While Peter is part of the TranPac Insurance acquisition from back on
January 1st, he officially started his Atlas duties ‘on-site’ on February
1, 2012. That’s when we captured the obligatory propaganda picture of him holding our Atlas sign in front of our 1132 Bishop Street
offices. See his smile...nice smile!
Peter Junker is a highly motivated individual. When asked what motivates him, he responded, ‘The things that motivate me the most
are personal and professional pride. Nothing can motivate me more
than always trying to be the best person I can and doing the best job
I can.’ Peter continues, ‘It all starts
with taking pride in what you do. Re“It all starts with taking
wards are nice, but they are, in thempride in what you do.
selves, not what gets me going.’
Rewards are nice, but
Well said Mr. Junker, well said.
they are, in themselves,
Peter has two grown daughters, a 20not what gets me
year-old in college on the West Coast
going!”
(that’s Jessica), and a 24-year-old living
and working here in Hawaii (that’s
-Peter Junker, new
Melissa). He’s been in the insurance
Atlas Account Exec.
business for, oh, let’s say a looooong
time, but he’s got a youthful energy
and enthusiasm for his profession that’s obvious when you meet
him.
Not sure what to call Peter (well, other than ‘Peter’)? Well then call
him ‘Pistol’ or ‘PJ.’ He’ll answer.
Some of Peter’s personal triumphs include overcoming Polio at the
age of two, and he ran in and completed the New York City Marathon back in 1978. We wonder if he ran in bell-bottoms!?
Here’re a few little secrets about Peter that we promised not to tell:
He worked in Hollywood in the mid-80s, managed a singer, produced
a music video, wrote songs, and was a writer on one of the first mu-
sic video TV shows.
Hey Pistol, can you
introduce us to Brad
Pitt or Jennifer Anniston?
Peter’s best vacation
was a 3-week jaunt
in France, spending 1
-week in Paris and 2weeks on the French
Riviera. Well ‘scuse
me Mr. Junker. Peter’s worst vacation
was his first honeymoon, where he
spent a trip driving
down the coast of
California from San
Francisco to San
Diego fighting with
his new bride every
other day. It reminded him of ‘The Heartbreak Kid’ (Ok, for all you
young ‘uns around the office, The Heartbreak Kid was a 1972 movie with
Charles Grodin and Cybill Shepherd, spending a Miami honeymoon questioning whether or not they made the right decision about getting married. Get it at NetFlix!).
If Peter could go anywhere in the world other than Hawaii, it would be
many spots in Europe, including Italy, Germany and Vancouver (sorry,
Vancouver, Canada, which is not in Europe). Peter loves cheese, as
coming from Wisconsin, you typically come out of the womb with a
wedge of cheddar in your hands. He also loves ice cream. His favorite
color is blue—Atlas blue, that is.
Peter loves travel, taking pictures, entertainment (music, movies, etc),
sporting events and making people laugh. Yes, we can always use a
little more laughter around our Atlas offices, so indeed, you are going to
fit right in!
Well, there you have it, every possible little thing you could ever want
to know about Mr. Peter Junker. There’s probably more to know, but to
get additional 411, you’re going to have to get over to his desk and
make his acquaintance, aren’t you!?
Once again PJ, welcome to the big show—Atlas—one atlas!
PAGE 4
VOLUME 8, ISSUE 2
Wellness ‘Bootcamp’ brings out the Atlas masses
The Atlas HEART committee brought together all the components necessary to pull-off our first annual wellness ‘bootcamp.’ A slew of health,
wellness and financial vendors came into Atlas on January 26th for a few lunchtime hours to share their knowledge, wares and feedback. About
60 Atlas employees came out and spent time going around the tables, soliciting answers to questions about blood pressure, primary care physicians, and gym memberships.
Matt Liew and Sandy Ferreira (CCG) worked the Powerbar table, and Matt Arine (PL) worked the Personal Lines table, sharing the health benefits of Powerbar, and the financial benefits of moving your auto and homeowners coverages to Atlas, respectively. Atlas attendees went dutifully to these tables and all the others, receiving ‘stamps’ to their bootcamp cards along the way, earning a healthy and delicious Zippy’s bento
for their attention and their efforts. See the pictures below to get a good feel for how fun the event was:
PAGE 5
NA LEO O’ ATLAS
Atlas Kick-Off Meeting 2012 in Pictures
PAGE 6
VOLUME 8, ISSUE 2
Atlas Kick-Off Meeting 2012 in Pictures
PAGE 7
NA LEO O’ ATLAS
Atlas’ Toastmasters host holiday open house
Atlas’ Toastmasters (TM) club was treated to a special holiday and open house meeting in December 2011. The TM Board wanted Atlas club
members to experience speakers from other clubs to broaden and expand our knowledge—the club was not disappointed.
Club President Teri Fabry opened the meeting and welcomed the following dignitaries: District 49 Governor Frank Vargo of the Hawaiian Electric TM Club, Division B Governor Patricia Whitebear of the Nooners TM Club, our own Chenise Blalock, Area 7 Governor and Vice PresidentMarketing District 49 Robert Cravalho of the Honolulu’s Finest TM Club.
Guest speakers included Debra Chong from the First Hawaiian Center TM Club who served as the
December meeting Toastmaster, Charles Mole, Jr., from the Kamehameha TM Club, who gave an
awesome speech, Speech Evaluator Cain Kamano from the Hawaiian Dredging TM Club and General
Evaluator Gloria Shishido from the Queen’s Medical Center TM Club.
Teri Fabry had many roles at this meeting and one of her roles included giving a speech. Teri polished and mastered a previous speech she gave titled, “1-2-3 Jump!” Teri gave the audience, which
included Atlas Senior Managers, a tantalizing, eagle’s eye-view of her sky diving adventure, describing her emotions and feelings so convincingly that you felt you were there—feeling the adrenalin
pumping and the anticipation of the jump. She gently brought us back to earth and ended her
speech by telling us that she wants to go again! Go Teri!
Our guest speaker, Charles Mole, Jr., gave an intriguing speech: “How I Got My Nickname.” Charles
kept the audience in suspense, leaving us hanging until the end of his speech—everyone was thinking the same thing—what was his nickname? He finally divulged what everyone was waiting to
hear… Maybe you should attend a Toastmaster’s meeting to find out!
Chenise Blalock with
Patricia Whitebear
The meeting concluded with a festive potluck that TM members generously provided to celebrate a very enlightening holiday meeting and the
conclusion of the 2011 Toastmaster’s meeting. Hele Mai—come join us! Membership is always open, so if you are interested, please see any
one of the TM Board officers or any TM member!
- Vivian Haitsuka (Employee Benefits)
TMI District 49 Spring Speech Contests
The Spring speech contests are just around the corner and it would be a tremendous testimony to the Atlas
Olelo Hui club if we had one of our own compete in either the Table Topics contest or the International contest.
You all know about Table Topics. The International contest is a 4 ½ minute to 7 ½ minute speech of any
type. It can be inspirational, persuasive or even humorous. To be eligible, you must have given a minimum
of six (6) speeches. So, we have several of you who would do a FANTASTIC job! And, mentoring and coaching is available…for FREE!!
Our club is in Area 7. The Area 2, 7, & 9 competition is on Wednesday March 14, 2012 @ 5:30 pm. The winners of each area will advance to the Division B competition which is on Saturday, April 7, 2012 @ 9:30 am.
From there, the winners go on to compete in the District 49 Contest on Saturday, May 5 @ The Pagoda Hotel
during the District Conference. Currently all of the Area and Division contests on Oahu will be taking place at
the HECO Training rooms located at 923 Ward Avenue.
PAGE 8
The contest organizers are also looking for TMI members to participate in roles such as Contest Chair, Contest Toastmaster and Ballot Counters. Please let Chenise or Teri know if you are interested or have any questions.
VOLUME 8, ISSUE 2
Let Me Introduce Myself: ‘My Name is Valentine’
I lived in Rome during the third century. That was long, long ago! At that time, Rome was ruled by an emperor named Claudius. I didn't like Emperor Claudius, and I wasn't the only one! A lot of people shared my feelings.
Claudius wanted to have a big army. He expected men to volunteer to join. Many men just did not want to fight in wars. They did not want to
leave their wives and families. As you might have guessed, not many men signed up. This made Claudius furious. So what happened? He had a
crazy idea. He thought that if men were not married, they would not mind joining the army. So Claudius decided not to allow any more marriages. Young people thought his new law was cruel. I thought it was preposterous! I certainly wasn't going to support that law!
Did I mention that I was a priest? One of my favorite activities was to marry couples. Even after Emperor Claudius passed his law, I kept on performing marriage ceremonies -- secretly, of course. It was really quite exciting. Imagine a small candlelit
room with only the bride and groom and myself. We would whisper the words of the ceremony, listening all
the while for the steps of soldiers.
One night, we did hear footsteps. It was scary! Thank goodness the couple I was marrying escaped in time. I
was caught. (Not quite as light on my feet as I used to be, I guess.) I was thrown in jail and told that my punishment was death.
I tried to stay cheerful. And do you know what? Wonderful things happened. Many young people came to
the jail to visit me. They threw flowers and notes up to my window. They wanted me to know that they, too,
believed in love.
One of these young people was the daughter of the prison guard. Her father allowed her to visit me in the cell. Sometimes we would sit and talk
for hours. She helped me to keep my spirits up. She agreed that I did the right thing by ignoring the Emperor and going ahead with the secret
marriages. On the day I was to die, I left my friend a little note thanking her for her friendship and loyalty. I signed it, "Love from your Valentine."
I believe that note started the custom of exchanging love messages on Valentine's Day. It was written on the day I died, February 14, 269 A.D.
Now, every year on this day, people remember. But most importantly, they think about love and friendship. And when they think of Emperor
Claudius, they remember how he tried to stand in the way of love, and they laugh -- because they know that love can't be beaten!
Meet your new Office Activities Committee
It’s a new year with a new OAC team! Sandy Tsukada, the ever-present force that
keeps the OAC’s in line, asks that we give our support to this year’s members who
have agreed to serve on the committee for 2012. From left to right, they include
Phoebe Kekauoha (CCG), Melanie Vierra (Personal Lines), Richard Fukeda
(Commercial Lines), Julie Yoshioka (Employee Benefits), Danielle Shepherd (Maui
Branch), Sandy, and Dorene Takeuchi (Makai Branch).
The OAC welcomes new ideas and suggestions for future events so please don’t hesitate to contact any one of them.
Thanks to the outgoing OAC from 2011,
Myles Murakami, Kathy Kano
(Commercial Lines), Patti Hoe
(Accounting), Bobbie Erickson (CCG)
and Lance Kawano (Personal Lines).
They enjoyed planning the events
throughout the year.
OAC 2011
OAC 2012
PAGE 9
EMPLOYEE NEW SLETTER OF ATLAS
IN SURANCE AGENCY
February 2012
Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
1
2
3
4
Ground Hog Day
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
13
14
15
16
17
18
25
Super Bowl Sunday
12
Valentine’s Day
19
26
20
21
22
23
24
President’s Day
(Holiday)
Atlas HEART—
’Blood Pressure’
Atlas Leadership
Institute 2012
Atlas Leadership
Institute 2012
Atlas Leadership
Institute 2012
27
28
29
Leap Day
Key: F.H. = Floating Holiday
The Final Word...by Myles Murakami
I hope all of you enjoyed our Atlas Insurance Agency 2012 Kick-Off event! Based on the feedback that I have received from a number of you, it was one of the best.
Colbert’s interview session provided many of you inspiration on how a guy from the tiny island of Lanai has become one of Hawaii’s most influential people, and that we all have the opportunity to get ahead in life if we are
willing to work at it. Keith Kashiwada did a great job showing us how miscommunication occurs in our daily lives
so humorously that most of us could relate to it, and he talked about how we choose to respond when miscommunication occurs.
We don’t want to lose what we learned at the Kick-Off Meeting, so stay tuned as we figure out ways to remind us
of the lessons we learned that day. If any of you have a good lesson that you learned and would like to share it with me, I’d greatly appreciate it. I am searching for ways to help all of us become better communicators at work and at home. one atlas.
“Mai maka’u I ka hana, maka’u I ka moloa.”
“Don’t fear work, fear laziness.”
-Famous Hawaiian Quote