TRIBUTE TO THE LATE GLADSTONE  KEITH POTTINGER

By Tommy James

16TH June, 2017

 

I feel  very honored to have been asked by Dr. Audrey Pottinger, to say a few words  on behalf of the Insurance Industry about her late Great father Gladstone Keith Pottinger, my good friend  and colleague for many years.

He was a man who loved the game of cricket and  to be out at 85 is a very good score.  So we are here today to celebrate his performance.

Gladstone  K. Pottinger was a giant of a man in the life insurance industry.  He stood just about 5ft 8ins tall but his accomplishments, commitment, tenacity, sincerity and innovativeness stand as  monumental flagships worthy of admiration and emulation.

He was recruited into the insurance industry  with Maritime Life by the late Duncan Hughes in May 1966 after serving as Deputy Field Superintendent on St Mary’s largest sugar cane and banana plantation.  It was that same Duncan Hughes who recruited me into the insurance business in  January 1970.   Over the years, Gladstone qualified for many of the industry’s leading sales awards.

Gladstone later joined Life of Jamaica (now Sagicor Life) in 1971,  when LOJ acquired Maritime Life’s business in Jamaica.  He served as Training Officer, then  Training Director and ultimately  as Assistant  Vice President , Marketing .

He was a strong disciplinarian and diligently prepared  his training sessions in ways that ensured retention and professionalism.  If classes  were scheduled to begin at 9:00 a.m,  at 9:05 he would shut the door,  so that those who were in,  were in,  and those who were out were out.  So everybody made sure to be on time as long as it was GLADDY POTTINGER conducting the session.

In 1974 he was elected to the Board of Directors of the Life Underwriters Association of Jamaica, Now JAIFA,  and brought about  remarkable transformation in preparation and presentation of the Association’s accounts.

After realizing the  precarious position of the association’s finances at the time, Gladstone proposed that membership dues be raised from $22 per year to $66, a  300% increase.  The membership accepted this proposal and the association was then back in good financial standing .

At  the  LUAJ  1977 Sales Congress held in Ocho Rios, which was attended by Insurance professionals throughout the Caribbean,  Sam Lal Jadonanan of Trinidad and Tobago, made a very passionate appeal for more Caribbean Unity.  Gladstone took the opportunity to call a meeting of the various territories gathered at the Congress and opened discussions about a Caribbean Association. What emerged from those discussions was  the Caribbean Association of Life Underwriters (CALU).

For the follow up  meetings , he took notes,  travelled to the various territories and became CALU’S first  Secretary General.   CALU has  been transformed to  a very strong Caribbean Association  of Insurance and Financial Advisors (CARAIFA) with exemplary Caribbean Unity.  Current Secretary General  is Marcelle Fenton.

Gladstone was passionate about   formation of a  Credit Union for members of the Insurance Industry and their families.  When the Credit Union League was approached  by Gladdy in 1977, he was told that  the League was considering  the amalgamation of Credit  Unions rather than expanding the number.    He    gave the  league an assurance that  he  could have 300 members registered  within three months.  At the end of the 3 month period,  there were 305 members registered.   My CU number was 106.   The Registrar of the league was  invited  to review the membership and that was the start of the Insurance Employees Coop Credit Union in December 1977.

His yeoman service in the Credit Union Movement spanned 23 years as Founder, Treasurer/Manager and General Manager. IECCU  became the first Credit Union in Jamaica to obtain a Level 1 rating based on performance.     The IECCU  currently under the leadership of Mark Bowen, who has remarkable praise for the Administrative ability of Gladdy  now has assets of more than $1billion and in excess of 8,000 members.

Gladstone became President of  LUAJ for the period 1978/79 at which time I  served with him as 1st Vice President.  His inaugural address under the heading “NATION IN COLLISION WITH INDISCIPINE, received wide news coverage and  he had a very successful year as president with numerous accomplishments.

He served as  Chief Finance Man, while I served as Congress for four Successive Sales Congresses,  1981, 1983, 1985, 1987, and the profit from those Congresses helped to keep  the Association financially strong.

During that period he taught me a lesson I will never forget.   His lesson was  this:  In the planning process, if you intend to enable the Association to make a profit from the event of lets say $1 million, treat  that $1 million   as an expense and then determine how many people, at what cost  each, will produce that profit.   If you reach  your targeted number  of  paying persons then your profit is secure.   Any amount of paying persons  over your designated number, creates super profit.

He was a very active member of JAIFA’s  Educational Council, and a trustee of the Jamaican Institute of Chartered Life Underwriters.

He was instrumental in the preparation of the study manual for the Government’s Ordinary Long Term Insurance Examinations.

In 1981 the then Superintendent of Insurance wanted the Ordinary Long Term exam to  move from a one day affair to  two days.  Gladstone  along with the late Owen Thompson made an appeal to the Superintendent to leave the exam as a one day affair since passing the exam was no guarantee that the candidate would be given a contract.   The Superintendent of Insurance  insisted on his decision.

Gladstone  and Owen Thompson arranged a meeting with then Prime Minister, Edward  Seaga who summoned the Superintendent of Insurance to  a meeting  at Jamaica House, along  with a team from the association.  After Gladstone and Owen put forward the reasons for objecting to the two day affair, the prime minister directed that the OLT Exam must remain  a one day event.

Gladstone was instrumental in the formation of the Life Insurance Managers and General  Agents Association (LIMGAA) and was General Secretary of the Association.   Formation of  this  Association was necessary for Managers in Jamaica to  pursue LIMRA’S Agency Management Training Course  locally. There was a requirement  for two managers from Jamaica to be trained  in the USA  as Moderators.  Gladstone met with his team  about  selection and  in 1985, the late D.A. Tony Williamson and Myself were selected as the first two persons from the industry in Jamaica to be trained in Washington, USA as AMTC Moderators.

His integrity, high moral standards, resourcefulness and dedication beyond the call of duty have been a source of inspiration to members of the entire insurance industry over the years.

Gladdy  said, some  of   his most memorable  events in the industry include:

  • when he was invited as a Special Guest at the Prestigious MDRT Meeting in 1979 – He was picked up at the airport by limousine, taken to a fancy hotel and treated royally at MDRT
  • and when he was named Association Member of the Year 1979.

Gladdy  resigned from LOJ  in 1990 and established his own CAREER TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT SERVICE where he developed several training courses for salesmen, administrative and management staff in the banking and financial services.

Despite his commitment and proclivity for productive work he was an outstanding family man.  When I did  an interview with Gladdy and his family to prepare a video for showing at his induction to  CARAIFA HALL OF FAME AT THE 2007 SALES CONGRESS HELD IN ST. LUCIA, one of his cherished honours,  his dear wife HERMINE who has pre-deceased him said, “If I had to marry again, I would marry  the same man, Gladstone Pottinger, I see no other.    He is  a caring, loving and devoted man.   Sky is the limit for his attention to his family,  especially  for the education of  his children Audrey, Arlene and Marlon and taking care of his wife”.

Dr. Audrey Pottinger said most of her father’s teaching ability and promptness have rubbed off on her and is reflective when she has  to conduct training sessions.   She said,  he always took his family to nice hotels for vacation.  She said, she  believes  he exposed her and her sister  Arlene  to  exquisite places  so that no man could fool them by promising them nice things.

Many Industry professionals like Dr. The Hon. Danny Williams, Michael Fraser and others took time out to show concern for Gladdy during his illness.   The late D.A. Tony Williamson said Gladdy was his LUATC Moderator in 1969 and he had a lasting impact on his career.  Winston Bennett said he learned a lot from Gladdy over the years and Bobby Bond also has high praises for Gladdy.

I placed the passing of Gladdy  on my facebook account  and there was a flood of condolences from  numerous, persons  who reside locally and overseas  whose lives were impacted by the Great Gladstone Pottinger.  Some of those persons include,  JOHN HAUGHTON, YVONNE DUNCAN who was the FIRST IECCU Member of Year in 1978, KEN STERLING, COLLEEN FLYNN,  KARL CHUNG and many more.

It is abundantly clear that GLADSTONE K. POTTINGER, lived under the admonition:  LET YOUR LIGHT SO SHINE BEFORE MEN THAT THEY MAY SEE YOUR GOOD WORKS AND GLORIFY YOUR FATHER WHICH IS IN HEAVEN.

The Bible says:  BE THOU FAITHFUL UNTIL THE DAY YOU DIE AND I WILL GIVE YOU A CROWN OF LIFE.      GLADSTONE KEITH POTTINGER  has gone to receive his Crown of Life. 

MAY HIS SOUL REST IN PEACE AND LIGHT PERPETUAL SHINE UPON HIM.