[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 42 (Thursday, March 21, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E367]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 CELEBRATING THE 150TH ANNIVERSARY OF FIREMAN'S FUND INSURANCE COMPANY

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                           HON. JARED HUFFMAN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 21, 2013

  Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, it gives me great pleasure to recognize the 
150th anniversary of Fireman's Fund Insurance Company, which was 
established in the city of San Francisco in 1863, and which is now 
headquartered in my Congressional District in Novato, California. A 
celebration of this important milestone will be taking place on April 
4th at the Old San Francisco Mint.
  Fireman's Fund has been one of the nation's premier insurance 
companies, protecting the future for individuals, families, and 
businesses. Its own history parallels that of both this state and 
country. Fireman's Fund has insured the construction of national 
landmarks including the Hoover Dam, the Golden Gate Bridge, and Charles 
Lindbergh's Spirit of St. Louis.
  It survived the Chicago Fire of 1871 and the San Francisco Earthquake 
of 1906, playing a critical role in rebuilding after the devastation. 
The company was also there when it mattered for many displaced people 
after the Loma Prieta earthquake of 1989.
  This company is a true innovator--the first insurance provider to 
write a standing grain policy in the U.S., the first carrier to offer 
nationwide automobile insurance and standardized homeowners insurance, 
and the first company to add ''green'' insurance to their offerings for 
homes and businesses.
  The Fireman's Fund name, which is heralded in California, emanates 
from the founder's arrangement to pay 10 percent of the company's 
profits to support the widows and orphans of firefighters who died in 
the line of duty. That tradition continues today through the company's 
Heritage Program ', providing fire departments throughout 
the nation with life-saving equipment and training. Working in 
combination with its employees, agents and brokers, the company has 
distributed more than $30 million to support firefighters for safer 
communities since 2004. The company has also been a benefactor of 
numerous charities in the San Francisco Bay Area and its generosity has 
added tremendously to the vitality of our communities.
  More than 1,200 Californians work for Fireman's Fund, with the 
majority of them residing in my own Congressional District. They are 
not only dedicated professionals who partner with agents and brokers to 
provide high quality insurance services, but many spend countless hours 
engaged in volunteer work for a variety of causes.
  I look forward to being at the 150th Anniversary Celebration of 
Fireman's Fund on April 4th. It is a great company with outstanding 
people and it remains one of California's most enduring financial 
institutions. Given the time of rapid change in which we live, it is 
comforting to know that companies like Fireman's Fund still endure, and 
I ask my colleagues to join me in wishing them well with the hope that 
they will still be with us for another 150 years.

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