A BRIEF HISTORY
In 1871, four years after confederation, a group of eight men from Haldimand County came together to create a mutual insurance company that would serve local farmers along the Lake Erie shore. Our company, the Erie Farmer’s Mutual Fire Insurance Co. was led by the first president, William Holmes, and initially served just the townships of Rainham, South Cayuga and Dunn.
HOW WE CELEBRATED
Commemorative 150th Apparel for All
All staff and Board of Directors were provided with a complimentary Erie Mutual Pullover or Full-Zip Hoodie with the custom 150th logo to proudly wear at 150th events in 2021 and to continue to show their Erie Mutual pride for years to come.
September 12, 2021 – 150th Celebration (Open to the Public)
(Location: Cottonwood Mansion, 740 Haldimand 53, Selkirk)
Open to the public with a 1:oo pm start time, and special invites to past staff, directors and others in the mutual community were invited, we took the celebration back to where it all started, the historic Cottonwood Mansion, the home of William Holmes and Erie Mutual’s first president. A guest registry was available for sign-in, along with complimentary Erie Mutual swag and 150th commemorative pens for all! Cake & ice cream was served by Chairman of the Board, Dave Lindsay, and enjoyed by all, along with a complimentary tour of Cottonwood Mansion provided to those who were curious about the historic home. Graeme Bachiu of Windecker Road Films attended with Claire Schembri to capture a video of the event.
October 27, 2021 – Commemorative Tree Planting & Time Capsule Burial (Private Catered Event)
(Location: Erie Mutual Insurance Office, 711 Main Street East, Dunnville)
A tree-planting ceremony of an Autumn Blaze Maple, complete with a plaque created by Sticker-It Signs & Graphics and a time capsule burial to commemorate the past 150 years, and preserve some key items of our day for a future generation to discover.
We also took time to plant a second tree that same day, an Autumn Splendor Horsechestnut, in memory of Marj Thalen. Marj was an Erie Mutual employee who has been missed since passing away suddenly in 2019. To honour Marj as an Erie staff member both her mother, Patricia, and her son, Kiefer, attended. Our event was catered with some delicious options by a local food truck, The Runaway Greek. We were pleased to have a group photo taken by Melanie Steeves and thankful that the event was captured on video by Windecker Road Films.
SUPPORTING OUR BUSINESS MEMBERS IN THE COMMUNITY
Facebook Contests supporting Erie Mutual business members started in the month of our 150th birthday on July 1st and continued throughout 2021 until December.
Gift cards were purchased and used as contest giveaways to the public during a difficult financial time midst a pandemic.
July 1, 2021
$150 Gift Card to Personalized Catering in Selkirk
August 1, 2021
$150 Gift Card to Ruffins Pet Centre & Grooming in Port Colborne
September 1, 2021
$150 Gift Card to Papa’s Pizza in Ridgeway
October 1, 2021
$150 Gift Card to Bob’s Place Family Restaurant in Dunnville
November 1, 2021
$150 Gift Card to Christine’s Creative Photography in Dunnville
December 1, 2021
$150 Gift Card to Sweet Retro-Spect in Dunnville
THOUGHTS ON ERIE MUTUAL AT 150?
“In my mind, if I had a conversation with William Holmes because he was such an astute businessman and tough businessman, I think he would be very proud of the fact that what he envisioned in his mind when he started back 150 years ago is exactly what we are today.”
- Warren Burger (Erie Mutual Board of Directors in our 150th Year)
“We have become a significant leader in the digital transformation of our business. One of the greatest resources that we have is the experience that our employees bring to our business.”
- John Dunton (Erie Mutual President & CEO in our 150th Year)
“We have a great corporate responsibility, and community is part of it, so any way that we can give back to the community we like to do that.”
- Mary Bacher (Erie Mutual COO in our 150th Year)
THANK YOU!
A special thank you to all Erie Mutual members past and present. Your loyalty to our company has allowed us to continue offering insurance protection to our community and surrounding areas for 150 years. Thank you to our management team and staff who provide the experience, the knowledge and the innovation for us to continue improving the insurance experience. We must offer special recognition to Myles at Tenpine Web Development for his continued efforts in the online promotion of our 150th celebration and videographer/filmmaker Graeme at Windecker Road Films for his devoted commitment to capturing video at events for the making of a commemorative 150th video.
Thank you also to all participants, partnering businesses and the Erie Mutual 150th Group who helped to organize and implement events throughout our 2021 celebration of 150 years!
