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18 years past 9/11 Memorial - Shield Insurance Agency Blog

18 years past the 9/11 Memorial

Posted on September 11, 2019August 30, 2023 by Shield Insurance Agency

I was watching the TV, on 9/11, as my young children were in the driveway waiting for the school bus. I peeled myself away when I heard the bus driver honk the horn to give me a wave goodbye.

The TV images were numbing. We remember them, they are unforgettable.

Days later as the rubble from the buildings settled, and the immediate chaos cleared, people started to do more, be more, give more, go to church more. For a while, it changed many areas of our everyday life.

Weeks later our neighborhood held a block party. I set a jar out to collect funds to do something in a neighborhood affected by 9/11, from a neighborhood to a neighbor. I was thinking maybe a bench or a birdbath. The money and support poured in, not only from our neighbors, but local companies, communities, the city of Flower Mound, and beyond.

9/11 Memorial

We ended up with almost $10,000 in cash, 12 square feet of granite, and the etching donated. Even Federal Express stepped up to ship a stunning 12-foot square laser etched memorial. Designed by two teenage boys from our neighborhood, it was placed in a New Providence New Jersey Neighborhood that lost 6 people that fateful day.

It was a project of good love and support, from our neighborhood, our community, the city, area businesses, and it had the same effect on the people of New Providence whom I am still very close friends today.

I wish there was a way to commemorate this event for the vast goodness it brought out in the people. I wish the anniversary wasn’t so difficult on all the families that lost loved ones, and the thousands of people that were in the path of responding…. It was a very painful time for too many people. Some years I don’t want to mention the Memorial our town made happen.

But I always go back and remember all the good that people gave and the goodness that we, as a nation, need to keep showing over and above all the other bad in the world. It always boils down to the simplicity of Good vs Bad. I choose to rejoice in the Good.

Connie Simmons-Miller

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Why do some people hate insurance companies?

OK… The big giant asterisk here first… Some of what I’m about to say is unproven, although I believe it to be true. Feel free to email me to dispute what I say and I will be happy to listen to what you have to say about this. Education on a topic is sometimes skewed by one’s beliefs, so I’m going to try to be unbiased. 🙂

Insurance company’s profits are usually around 3% !!! They are highly regulated by the States. People complain that their rates are too high. Can people see that insurance companies are simply a pass-through for our money?

Car crashes… SOME car repair companies sometimes over-quote since they know insurance is involved. We tell people to please get 3 quotes. Sometimes, they are 50% apart!! I KNOW this is true SOMETIMES for glass companies too. You can tell them that there’s no insurance involved and get a quote for $180 for a windshield, and someone else calls back on the same day for the same exact car and they say there is insurance involved and it’s over $400?? The list of examples goes on and on and on.

How about Fraud.

Insurance companies have to employ people to fight this! I don’t have a lot of stats on this, but I know it’s a HUGE deal and it makes our premiums go up and up and up! Some fraud is black and white, but others… not so much… did you have a fire? how much was that watch that got burned up worth? Even some good people will stretch the truth!

Frivolous lawsuits.

Yep, they’re out there… lots and lots and lots of them. Here again, I don’t have stats at hand, but I know it’s another big deal that the insurance companies have to hire people to fight against and many times just payout to settle to reduce court costs whether right or wrong! Not to mention valid lawsuits where people get more than they deserve? OK… I know this is debatable on many levels, so please don’t grill me or razz me on this one!!

You can apply these issues to any type of insurance! Car, Home, and Health (have you seen pharmaceutical profits!!??) are probably the big ones. I know Medical Malpractice is a big one too, but I’m not much of an expert on this one, but I heard 1/3 of doctor’s salaries go to pay for this.

So the next time you want to complain about your insurance rates, trust me, I completely agree…. but please don’t blame the insurance companies!!!

Submitted by Andy