Ray Gage

Ray Gage was an entrepreneur and sales leader in the insurance industry for 34 years. He worked with clients daily of all sizes, ranging from start-up businesses to firms with over $500 million in yearly revenue.

After retiring from insurance, Ray carried his experience into the coaching & consulting field. He is now a Mindvalley Certified Business Coach with certificates in Fundamentals of Coaching, Coaching Competencies, and Impacting Leaders. He brings a unique perspective to his work due to his involvement with many different types of businesses and other professional organizations over the years.

Ray’s personal mission statement is “learning to show up better in my world so that I can help others learn to show up better in theirs”.

Sarah Newbry

Sarah Newbry has been at Indiana Farmers for 10 years. Her insurance career has all been within sales/ distribution including various roles working with specialty lines; marketing; personal, farm and commercial book management; field sales and consulting. She and husband Justin have been together 28 years and have two children: Beckett 11 and Vivi 10. Both kids attend school in Noblesville, where they live life to its fullest on Morse Reservoir enjoying the lake life and all its activities. She serves at her church, Trader’s Point Chistian Church and on the Boys and Girls Club of Noblesville Auxiliary Board. 

Ben Zimmer

Ben Zimmer began his insurance career in 2003 with a captive carrier focusing on life insurance. After 10 years, he decided that he wanted to focus on working with business owners. In 2013, he joined a local independent insurance agency with the pipedream of eventually leading a unique indie agency. In late 2017, Ben decided it would be a great idea to sell his home, his car and take early surrender penalties on half of his retirement account to open Ethos Insurance & Risk Management in Valparaiso. He would have never considered starting Ethos without the support of his extremely patient and beautiful wife Devin and his professional yin to his yang, Stacie Homan. Specializing in commercial and life insurance production, he enjoys selling alongside Ethos producers in Porter and LaPorte County. He is also an active member of the Big I executive committee. Ben, his wife Devin, and their three sons make a lot of noise and break things in downtown Valparaiso. 

Rick Pitts

Richard S. Pitts is Vice President and General Counsel to Arlington/Roe & Co., Inc., an insurance brokerage and managing general agent headquartered in Indianapolis. Rick also serves as general counsel to the Independent Insurance Agents of Indiana, Inc. As counsel to the "Big I," Rick speaks annually at the association's Agency Compliance Seminars and teaches various seminars on insurance and employment related matters. Rick has also presented continuing education seminars to insurance professionals nationally.

Rick is a 1983 graduate of Wabash College and a 1986 graduate of the Indiana University McKinney School of Law. He clerked for the Honorable Patrick D. Sullivan, a judge of the Indiana Court of Appeals in 1986-87. Rick is admitted to practice before Indiana state and federal courts, the United States Supreme Court and the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit and is a member of local, state, and national bar associations. He has tried cases and participated in over seventy appeals.

Rick has served as a panelist and lecturer on a variety continuing education subjects, including cyber-related risks, the Americans with Disabilities Act, "Mold: Issues Under the Microscope" for the Indiana Continuing Legal Education Forum (ICLEF), and "Insurance Issues for Builders" for the Indiana Builders Association. Rick has also served as chair of several ICLEF seminars, including "Advanced Corporate Practice," "Privacy Law," and "Insurance Coverage Issues." Rick has also presented seminars on "Insuring Fiduciary Exposures," "Insurance Coverage Disputes," and "Agency Succession and Perpetuation." He has co-authored articles appearing in the Indiana Law Review.

Alex Cole-Murphy

Alex is focused on customizing and delivering sales training to help clients find and build relationships. She currently trains and coaches banking teams to sell better and be more effective within their specific line of business while supporting company and sales initiatives. Alex is a natural speaker, animated and interactive as well as an emerging leader within our organization. 

Daniel Smith

Daniel has over 16 years of experience in marketing and design for insurance agencies, carriers, and trade organizations. He has designed and implemented award-winning campaigns for content, client engagement, publishing, and programs. He is also a licensed P&C agent.

Jon Blankenship

Jon has spent his career developing digital marketing initiatives for fundraising efforts, media companies, trade groups, and audience engagement campaigns. He has a background in content development, web design, email marketing, SEO, and analytics.