The Magic of Presentation Binders.

About a month ago I met with a new suspect that owned a large plumbing outfit. I spent a few minutes talking about misc things and asked to take a look at his current insurance policies. He didn’t want to show them to me. So I explained that I was applying for the job as his insurance broker and had to review his current policies to make sure his coverage was in order etc… He wasn’t very interested in doing things my way so I told him thanks for the time and if ever I could help him please give me a call. I remember him being offended that I didn’t want to “quote” his insurance policies.. After all he was paying over $350,000 a year in insurance premiums and had 6 other brokers working on his insurance as we speak.

This morning at his sunrise rotary meeting while I was still asleep he spoke with one of my clients, and told my client what an idiot I was.

When I got to work this morning I had a message asking if he might have an hour of my time this afternoon at 3 pm to discuss his insurance. I happened to have the time so I said sure ‘why not”….

I made my presentation to him, his CFO, Controller and for some odd reason his CPA was there as well as his shop foreman…?

About 45 minutes into the hour I was stopped, and the owner of this company gave me his apologies for not letting me help him a month ago, and asked if there was still time for me to step in…. Sure… He then told me he owned a catering business and a few restaurants and could I handle those for him? Sure.. and he said and to make it up to you I would like to call the owner of the pool company I just sold he could use your help… A few minutes latter and I am speaking with the pool company owner who is also saying he is sorry but he can only let me handle his group health insurance right now, but would I still offer him the service he heard about until the rest of his insurance was able to be moved to me? Sure.. .so tomorrow I will b o r over another $43,000 a month group health account with the owners apologies that it couldn’t be more right now and his promise that I will be the only broker he works with from now on!

Turns out that this morning at the sunrise rotary meeting I became the topic of discussion. It started with a plumbing company owner saying I was an idiot. To which a client of mine explained to him what I had done for his company…. As the discussion progressed the pool company owner and a few other business owners (whom I just got the names from my client this evening to contact when I have time… if they don’t call me.) joined in….

There is a lot more to this story… but suffice it to say within 24 hours for my 3 pm meeting today I will have added over $1,000,000 in new premium!

This is unsolicited… but you have to get to Chicago in OCT.. as you are the only ones I will be sharing this proposal with… Other than my cluster…. I am only sharing it with QC out of a sense of obligation to say thank you to Michael, and because I vetoed all my local competitors. This is hundred, if not thousands of hours of work product, condensed into a 45 minute presentation…. Way in front of the curve and my competitors’!

Letter to the Governor requesting aid for homeless shelter.

Dear Governor Schwarzenegger,

As you are acutely aware, this is a time of economic stress for many of our communities. As a small businessman living and working in Turlock, California, I see many people struggle, not just to pay a mortgage, recover stock losses, or even buy a new car. Turlock, like other communities, is home to those without the means to even rent a humble apartment, or put food on a table. My family and I have seen the increasing numbers of homeless in our community and are dumbfounded by the lack of resolve to do something for those in the most need.

Governor, as you may know, several years ago the city of Turlock asked HUD for money to buy and remodel a homeless shelter. HUD granted the cities request and gave Turlock several million dollars to buy and rehab a homeless shelter. In May 2005, Turlock bought an old warehouse in an industrial area for the homeless shelter paying $350,000 with money it received from HUD.

In February 2006, Turlock voted on a plan to build the shelter. The council approved option B of the plans dated January 5, 2006. In June 2006, the city put a halt to building the shelter and spent $70,000 looking at other sites to for the shelter. Several months ago the city of Turlock said that the homeless shelter should be “privatized” as the city doesn’t want to be in the homeless business. Senator, this is nearly 4 years after applying for and receiving a HUD grant to construct a homeless facility. As a businessman in our community, I at first followed the story with pride in my community for stepping up to the plate, then with increasing frustration as politicians studied and restudied solutions to a homeless challenge that has not abated.

Out of my frustration, I determined that with a comprehensive business plan and sound management, a shelter in Turlock operate to the benefit of the community and those who would be served by services provided, i.e. our homeless neighbors. I began outreach to other community programs to enlist their aid in supporting this endeavor.

In January of this year, my family stepped up to the plate to offer to buy the shelter from Turlock. As part of our proposal, we asked to be able to use some of the HUD money to bring the shelter up to code in preparation for services and temporary shelter. The city ignored the offer and embarked on another round of studies and appraisals.

The city counsel also asked if the building could just be used as a warehouse to hold items for use with low-income families to meet HUD requirements for use and not trigger a requirement for the city to repay the original grant.

As I woke to the freezing fog that blankets our valley I found myself wondering how the city can legitimately use a homeless grant to get federal money then not use those resources for its intended purpose. I wondered what would happen to an average person talked a government agency into granting money and I simply did what I wanted with it.

As I look over a budget for the shelter from January 25, 2006 I see millions of dollars from RDA and CDBG funds listed with account numbers holding them. I wonder where that money is now 3 years latter. Since it wasn’t used for the homeless shelter we need to get an accounting for these funds and ensure that they are put to their proper use.

When I last was in front of the city council, they urged that the shelter be run by private citizens. When I proposed a business plan and offered to get the shelter on a solid footing, my proposal was not even considered. So, I am left wondering what happened with the original grants and their resolve to enlist private citizens to step in to operate a shelter in Turlock. With so much HUD money theoretically given by HUD for this purpose, it is critical that we get an accounting of the resources and begin to implement a common sense plan to use the money for its noble intended purpose.

I am writing to ask that you request an audit of the HUD grants to the city of Turlock so that we can understand how the money is being used. This will be a critical step forward to putting together a common sense solution so that we can step up as a community to serve the homeless living in Turlock and our surrounding communities.

We the people are willing to do the work. We just need our officials in Turlock to account for the project, allow private citizens to rally around the project and get it finished so we can do important work.

Thank You

Grant Davis

President

GDI Insurance Agency, Inc

801 Geer Rd, Turlock, CA 95380

888-991-2929