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Gordy Insurance merges with Avery Hall

Founder Frank Gordy retires for the second time
December 7, 2016

Story Location:
103 Broadkill Road
Milton, DE
United States

After more than 50 years in the insurance business, Frank Gordy is retiring again.

He gave up his insurance license when he turned 80, but he continued to work at the company he founded.

Now, Gordy Insurance Agency at 103 Broadkill Road in Milton will become part of the Avery Hall Insurance Group based in Salisbury, Md., with other offices in Seaford, Easton, Md., and Bridgeville.

Gordy, who was born and still lives in Georgetown, is joined in retirement with his longtime associate, Renee Fjelsted, who lives in Dover. Fjelsted took over as president and owner when Gordy retired the first time.

Operating an insurance agency in a small town has been an enriching experience for them.

“I will miss the people because they were like family to us,” Fjelsted said.

“We get to see it all because it's really like we are part of the family,” Gordy added.

Gordy stressed that the service and products offered by the agency will not change. “It's an ownership change only,” he said.

The pair worked for Delaware Farm Bureau Family Insurance and have known each other more than 35 years. “We started this agency together, and people said we couldn't do it,” Gordy said. “We had to start from scratch.”

Fjelsted said interest rates shot up to 16 percent in the early 1980s. “We couldn't get large insurance companies to even look at us. We used our life insurance to pay the bills at first,” she said.

Gradually they became an integral part of the community. “It took about three years, and the people started to treat us like we had always lived here,” she said.

Over their long careers, they have won just about every award and honor given in the insurance industry. They have also served as officers in many organizations, and for several years Gordy was a lobbyist for the industry in the Delaware General Assembly.

Avery Hall President Joseph Gast has been working with the Milton staff to make the transition a smooth one.

“Our clients are very important, and now we will be able to serve them better with more resources,” he said.

Gast, who grew up in Seaford, was a representative for a company associated with the Gordy Agency. “I kept in touch and knew this was a well-run agency that is very much entrenched in the town of Milton,” he said.

In the Milton office are insurance agent Randy Brown, who recently moved to Milton, and account representative Dawn Porter.

The agency offers commercial, home, auto, life, health and farm owners insurance. Phone 302-684-3413 or go to www.averyhall.com for more information. Avery Hall was founded in 1925 and has grown to include 65 employees with five offices.

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