These days, Russell is a partner at Glastonbury, Conn.-based agency May, Bonee & Walsh, where he sees himself as the eyes and ears of a client account. It's up to him to truthfully tell an underwriter the good and the bad, and to have reasonable discussions with customers about coverage and appropriate pricing. In an era of instant electronic quotes, those personal relationships “are never going away,” he says. “That's a best practice.”

“In Augusto, what you see is what you get; a man who lives out the priorities of faith, family and work — in a credible, honoring balance,” says Jim Hasson, regional president for Travelers' Northeast Region. Hasson, who crosses paths with Russell one or two times a month, says Russell “lives out a committed, sincere passion for our business and our customers, while showing unparalleled professionalism.”

A world apart

Russell was born in Manila, the capital city of the Philippines, in 1960. His mother, Josefine, was a teenager and his father was not involved in his son's life. “Apparently, he was from a wealthy family and they didn't quite approve of my mother,” says Russell. Josefine raised her boy as a single parent until she met another man, with whom she had two boys, Robert and James.

That relationship didn't work out, and a few years later Josefine met Kenneth B. Russell, an American serving in the U.S. Navy. “They fell in love, and wanted to get married,” Russell says, “but the Navy didn't like that Kenneth wanted to marry a much older woman who had three children. I owe everything to him — they got married in 1968, and he adopted the three of us.”

Another son, Kenneth Jr., was born in 1969. A year later their father's time in the Navy was up, so he put his family on a plane bound for America, where they would settle in Westford, Mass. — a town about 35 miles northwest of Boston.

“I was entering fourth grade at the time,” Russell recalls, “and I couldn't speak a lick of English. Neither could my brothers. But my mother wisely said that we were going to speak English 24/7 in our household, and after a few months we were fluent enough to be conversational.

“The irony,” he laughs, “is that I ended up with the highest GPA in English of my high school graduating class!”

After graduating from high school in 1979, Russell chose to attend Tufts University, and paid for his education himself. But this achievement was bittersweet, as Josefine passed away shortly after, in 1980. “She was our only connection to family in the Philippines — my aunts and uncles and cousins.”

Coupled with his mother's death, “It took me a while to graduate because I kept running out of money,” he recalls. “I would go to school for a semester, then take time off to work, so I could save up more money.” But his time at Tufts was well spent for the insurance industry. As it happened, the father of his college roommate, Steve Dubin, was in town from London and took his son and Russell out to dinner. Mr. Dubin worked as an insurance salesman at MetLife, and saw an opportunity to extol the virtues of the industry. “Of course, it was in one ear and out the other,” Russell says.

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Augusto Russell.

Insurance beginnings

But in 1985, with about two-and-a-half to three years' worth of college credits under his belt, Russell again found himself not able to pay his tuition. He remembered how highly Mr. Dubin spoke of the insurance industry, and when he saw an ad in the paper for a company needing an insurance salesman, he answered it — and got the job.

“I ended up selling some kind of a disability policy that only pays if you got hurt while on a plane, train, taxi, bus or something,” he recalls. “Knowing what I know now, I probably never would have taken that job. It wasn't the insurance world I was expecting.”

Russell left that position and joined Brookline, Mass.-based Kaplansky Insurance Agency in 1986. There, founder/owner Ely Kaplansky trained him in commercial lines. “I studied three months for a license and then I wrote my first account,” he recalls. School was put on hold while Russell was busy laying the groundwork for his career and building the agency's commercial lines department, but he did finish his education and receive a degree in 1994 with a major in English and classical literature.

After eight years at Kaplansky it was time to move forward and Russell accepted a position at the Hoffman Insurance Agency, where he worked with owner Bill Hoffman — whom Russell calls “a very good mentor to me.”

Russell recalls his life at this time fondly: He and his wife, Suzanne, whom he married in 1990, had just finalized paperwork to adopt a 16 month-old boy, Joey, from the Philippines in 1999. For the first time since he left the Philippines as a child, he was set to return to the country of his birth. He and Suzanne had to make an important detour before picking up their son at an orphanage in Dumaguete; the two visited Manila, where Russell's aunt and uncle still lived, and whose lost connection has haunted Russell for 29 years. A distant relative in the United States helped set up the reunion by passing along contact info.

“I was 10 years old when I saw them last,” Russell recalls. “It was very emotional, because this was my grandmother's land. I remember the guava tree I used to climb, the mango trees, the rice paddies. It was the most amazing family reunion and a life-changing experience. I got to see my aunt and uncle, who were living very impoverished. When I returned to the U.S., my brothers and I put some money together so we could buy and have a cinder-block home built for them. But right before it was completed, my uncle passed away.”

After bringing home their son, who is now 17 and has just finished his junior year of high school, Russell began volunteering with a faith-based social services organization called HOPE Worldwide, where he committed to fundraising in the Boston area. Noticing the insurance agent's enthusiasm and dedication to the task, an executive asked Russell if he would quit his job and work for the organization full time.

After much prayer, he says, Russell and Suzanne decided that he would leave the insurance industry — at a time when “I was one of the young bucks and in line to make partner,” he adds — and become the director of development for HOPE Worldwide in New England at the end of 1999.

Russell's main responsibility was to raise money for its flagship program, which is a group home for orphans just outside of Bucharest, Romania. “Given my background, and that I had just adopted my son, I absolutely loved that job,” he says. “My purpose every morning was clear: I was making a difference in children's lives by providing them help and protection.

“I know what it's like in Third World conditions — I have lived there,” he continues. “And that has been my foundation for trying to live in a manner that isn't opulent or lavish because we have so much here in the U.S. I have a deep appreciation for the life I have. I like to think of myself as living a Christian life in a meaningful way, I subscribe to the tenets of 'to whom much is given, much is expected.'”

He stayed in the nonprofit world for three years, until he and his family decided to move to Connecticut to be closer to his wife's family. Russell wrestled mentally with what work he should do now: Stay in development, or go back to insurance.

“Having traveled across the world to developing countries, it dawned on me that insurance is one of the pillars of why First World countries are First World countries,” Russell says. “If I was in a developing nation and wanted to buy a house, I would have to pay for it in cash or save money and build it brick by brick. In the U.S., I just have to show a certificate of insurance and the bank will show me the money, assuming I'm credit-worthy.”

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Augusto Russell.

The heart grows fonder

Even though Russell had served the insurance industry for 15 years, it took three years away from it to truly realize the meaning of what his work could be. And with that, Russell found his purpose.

Coming back to insurance wasn't easy: Russell had lost his insurance license and CIC designation during his time away. But after a few interviews with some big Connecticut players, he landed at May, Bonee & Walsh in Glastonbury, Conn. Russell recognized an opportunity: The agency had a well-established Life & Health business, but one of the partners, Patrick Walsh, sought to bolster the P&C side of its book. “I had come to Connecticut with no contacts and didn't know the competition, but I could help with the low-hanging fruit.”

Realizing they had a good worker on their hands, in 2008 the agency extended a partnership. “I'm part of their exit strategy at this point because I'm the youngest,” Russell laughs, speaking of his partners Ted May, Phil Bonee and the aforementioned Walsh. In his 13 years with the agency, Russell has performed well, doubling the size of the agency's P&C business, which now brings in about $12 million in annual premium, at a mix of 75% commercial, 25% personal.

The agency offers generalist coverages, with flagship P&C accounts of the Travelers Championship (part of the PGA Tour, and for which Russell also handles all risk management considerations) and Newman's Own. The agency also specializes in nonprofits, including Oak Hill, the state's largest provider of services for people with disabilities, and has programs for churches and nursing homes.

Russell maintains that insurance agents need to give back to the community their business serves. “People don't care how much you know, until they know how much you care,” says Russell. “It's a no-brainer to give back.”

To that end, Russell is active in the Professional Insurance Agents of Connecticut; he served as its president from 2013 to 2014. During his tenure, Russell championed a key piece of legislation that protects the insurance-buying consumer and the independent agent. The law, H.B. 5248, which prohibits the inappropriate use and issuance of certificates of insurance, became effective on Oct. 10, 2014.

He also serves on the board of directors for the Arc of Farmington Valley, more commonly known as “Favarh,” which is the world's largest community-based organization for people with intellectual, physical and developmental disabilities. He currently serves as president of its board and spearheaded a three-year, $2 million capital campaign, which is on track to finish six to eight months early.

Thomas Leonardi, the former insurance commissioner of Connecticut from 2011–14, says he has had many occasions to work with Russell during his tenure, and is most impressed with Russell's contributions to the industry and community. “I believe he is one of the finest human beings I have come across in my career. He genuinely cares about people, his community and his profession.”

“I try to live by the Golden Rule,” Russell says. “And at the end of the day, I have kept my integrity.” Like everyone, he adds, “I'm not without errors, but I hope the overall impression is that I can be trusted.”

Paying more than lip service

When Russell became president of the Professional Insurance Agents of Connecticut (PIACT) in 2013, he focused his efforts on engaging young talent in the insurance industry.

At a chamber of commerce event, Russell recognized Mark Scheinberg, the president of Goodwin College — a four-year nonprofit school that also offers certificates and associate's degree programs. The two got to talking about the insurance industry's talent drain, and Scheinberg introduced Russell to Dr. Cliff Thermer, assistant vice president for strategy & business development and the chairman of the social science, business and education department.

Goodwin College, based in East Hartford, Conn., was looking to create educational programs in which students could progress through courses quickly and be ready for the workforce. After confirming the insurance industry's need for young blood, Thermer, Russell and the executive committee of PIACT brainstormed what knowledge students must have that would make them viable candidates for the insurance industry. These educational tracks — focusing on P&C, customer-relations management, insurance-software management, social media and communications, are now embedded within such courses as “Personal Finance and Insurance” and “Principles of Insurance,” which are offered through the business school.

“We figured that the Travelers and the Hartfords of the world are recruiting four-year degree graduates, but what we wanted was to offer courses that could train producers and support staff,” Russell explains.

The coursework also provides a pathway for students to acquire Connecticut insurance licensing. Students also can earn paid, part-time internships at PIACT member agencies.

“We are hoping to see this program replicated,” says Russell. “I'm talking with other community colleges in the area, and one is interested in the program. This particular college is affiliated with another 11 or 12 community colleges in the Connecticut system. So if this takes off, there is a blueprint for PIA National to get this started in other states.”

However, one big challenge remains, he adds, and that is “getting young folks to pay attention to insurance and this industry.”

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