Dick Poppa of Camillus honored as ‘Insurance Person of Distinction’
Richard A. Poppa, CAE, AAI, received the 2016 Insurance Person of Distinction Award from the Central New York insurance community last month. The chief executive officer of the Independent Insurance Agents & Brokers of New York (IIABNY) was honored during the 56th annual Syracuse Insurance Day Conference (Syracuse I Day), October 25 at the OnCenter Convention Center in Syracuse. The Syracuse “I” Day Committee presented the award in recognition of his contributions to the insurance profession and to the Central New York community.
Mr. Poppa (pronounced “Poppy”) has served as IIABNY president and CEO since 1996. Under his leadership, New York’s oldest insurance producer trade association has grown to meet the educational, political and business interests of more than 1,750 agencies and their more than 13,000 employees. Prior to joining IIABNY, he served in leadership roles with the Independent Insurance Agents of America, the Independent Insurance Agents of Indiana, and the Independent Insurance Agents and Brokers of California. He began his trade association career with the Insurance Institute of Indiana.
In addition to his work with IIABNY, Mr. Poppa is a member of the TrustedChoice.com board of managers; past chair of the board of the Empire State Society of Association Executives; an elder in the First Presbyterian Church of Skaneateles; vice chair of the board of the John Dau Foundation; a member of the Miller College of Business executive advisory board; a member of the advisory board of insurance staffing firm Work At Home Vintage Experts (WAHVE); a member of the ASAE Insurance Company board of directors; and a member of the executive committee and board of directors of the Insurance Industry Charitable Foundation – New York Northeast Division.
A native of Indianapolis, Indiana, Mr. Poppa is a graduate of Ball State University. He and his wife Kim reside in Camillus.
For more than 50 years, the Syracuse Insurance Day Conference has supported the insurance industry in general and the Central New York community as a whole. Through industry participation, high school scholarships and charitable donations, the Syracuse Insurance Day Conference has become the region’s largest annual insurance gathering.
