[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 106 (Wednesday, June 24, 2026)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E614-E615]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             HONORING THE MEMORY OF MR. WILLIAM R. BERKLEY

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. RICHARD E. NEAL

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, June 24, 2026

  Mr. NEAL. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the memory of a great 
business and charitable leader from New England, Mr. William R. 
Berkley, to celebrate his life and extraordinary achievements. 
Tragically, Bill died suddenly from a heart attack.
  His accomplishments in business are undeniable but somewhat beneath 
the radar as he eschewed the spotlight unless it was to further some 
greater purpose. His success in business allowed him to ``pay it 
forward'' in many ways, including board leadership of several 
educational and charitable organizations and generous giving through a 
family foundation, as described more fully below. He is a strong 
believer in the American Dream and wants to foster it for others as 
best he can. He recently shared his private collection of rare 
documents in an exhibit entitled ``The Declaration of Independence: 
Long Trail to Liberty'' at NYU's Grey Art Museum and was in the process 
of creating a museum in New York City to celebrate American history and 
opportunity.
  Bill founded his company W.R. Berkley Corporation nearly 60 years 
ago. Since that time, the company, which is headquartered in Greenwich, 
Connecticut, has grown from a small investment management firm into one 
of the largest commercial lines property and casualty (P&C) insurers in 
the United States. Comprising nearly sixty specialty insurance 
businesses and employing over 8500 people worldwide, the company is a 
Fortune 500 company and a member of the S&P 500 with gross written 
premiums exceeding $10 billion.
  The company was largely a reflection of Bill, as he was 
affectionately known. The company's driving purpose is to provide 
customers ``peace of mind'' and its core tenet is striving ``to do the 
right thing.'' Bill strongly believed that the integration of service, 
integrity and fairness in the company culture was central to building 
trust and loyalty among the company's customers, partners, and 
employees.
  This strong sense of purpose, determination and drive was forged in 
Bill's childhood largely out of necessity in response to a tragic 
event. When Bill was eleven, his father was killed when the company 
plane he was on crashed. Determined not to burden his mother and to 
help out financially, Bill started selling Austin biscuits first in his 
apartment complex and later to the owner of the local grocery store. 
Impressed by the young man, the store owner soon offered Bill a job. As 
Bill recalled the experience, ``it was there that I learned to work 
hard and longer than anyone else in the market. I wanted to learn all I 
could about the business and soon I was giving the owner advice that 
would improve his operations. Mentally, I pretended I owned the store, 
which made me take responsibility for all I did.''
  Bill also started a paper route and learned how to invest the 
proceeds from these jobs from a neighbor who was a stockbroker. Still, 
he did not have enough money to afford to go to the University of 
Pennsylvania, his first choice. Fortunately, he was offered a full 
scholarship to attend NYU, which he quickly accepted. Bill often 
referred to that as his ``big break.'' Bill excelled there, graduating 
in three years with a double major in statistics and finance.
  He subsequently received an MBA from Harvard Business School, which 
he largely paid for with the proceeds of selling a large paper route he 
had started while at NYU. At Harvard, Bill once again exhibited his 
extraordinary business acumen, starting and running a $2 million 
investment fund out of an apartment with a classmate, Paul Dean. 
Berkley, Dean & Company quickly grew to managing $10 million in assets.
  At this point, another event helped shape Bill's world view and 
business ethos. While at

[[Page E615]]

Harvard, he had interned and later worked full time at Fidelity 
Management Research Company until he completed his MBA. While he was 
offered a permanent position at Fidelity upon graduation, he knew he 
wanted to start his own business. Ned Johnson, the then chair at 
Fidelity, initially offered a $25, 000 investment in Bill's new 
company. However, Fidelity's advisors effectively nixed the new 
investment. This could have crushed Bill's dream of starting a new 
business. Fortunately, Ned Johnson decided to keep his commitment and 
gave Bill the money as a consulting fee. Bill later said, ``This was a 
huge lesson for me. From then on, I've known the importance of keeping 
your word and honoring your commitments.''
  Bill spent the next 45 years building, leading, and growing W.R. 
Berkley into a leading provider of P&C insurance globally. Ten years 
ago, he relinquished the reins as CEO to his son Rob Berkley, but he 
remained the Executive Chairman of the company until his death and the 
company still bears his imprint and influence. Even after turning 80, 
Bill continued to go in early every morning because ``I just find it 
exciting'' and ``I want to improve the company every day.''
  Rob says that his father was ``always encouraging his colleagues to 
think outside of the box and not to accept the status quo.''
  And Bill also never lost sight from where he came and the forces and 
lessons that led to his success, looking to ``pay it forward'' often. 
Bill and his wife Marjorie, through their family foundation, have 
focused their philanthropy on three primary areas: education, health 
and environmental issues. For example, the family's foundation recently 
gave a ``transformative gift'' to expand the Georgetown University 
School of Nursing, a natural intersection of their interest in 
education and health, designed to help address the Nation's shortage of 
nurses.
  Bill also gave back with his time by serving on numerous corporate 
boards, providing leadership, advice, and support. He served as Vice 
Chairman of the Board of Directors of Georgetown University, where he 
helped create the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World 
Affairs, devoted to fostering inter-religious dIalogue with a goal of 
improving global cultural understanding. He also was a former Vice 
Chair of the Board of Trustees of the University of Connecticut and 
former Chairman of Achievement First, a group of charter schools 
operating in the Northeast, serving over 15,000 inner-city children. 
And he was an Emeritus member of the Board of Directors of the National 
Parks Conservation Association, after serving on the Board for many 
years.
  But most of all, Bill gave back to NYU--the school he credited with 
providing him the opportunity for a free education that supported his 
success. Most notably, he had recently retired as Chairman of the New 
York University Board of Trustees. He also served in several other 
board leadership capacities at NYU over three decades, including at the 
NYU Stern School of Business and the Langone Medical Center. Marjorie 
and him made several large gifts to the school's Leonard N. Stern 
School of Business. These efforts were focused on expanding access to 
education through scholarships, reflectIng their belief in helping 
talented young people achieve their potential. ``I see education as 
giving you the framework to understand how everything works,'' Bill 
explained, ``It doesn't solve your problems, but it gives you something 
to build on. When combined with hard work and perseverance through 
challenging times, success is usually the outcome.''
  Over the years, Bill received many awards for his business, civic and 
philanthropic activities, including most recently the Horatio Alger 
Award in 2024 ``bestowed upon exceptional leaders who have triumphed 
over adversity to achieve greatness.''
  Bill exemplified how to lead a life guided by deep, constant purpose 
and fueled by optimism, determination, and industry. He built a company 
that is highly respected and an established leader in the insurance 
industry, as well as changed lives by providing charitable leadership 
and compassionate giving.
  Mr. Speaker, I honor Bill's legacy and recognize his achievements as 
a global entrepreneur, corporate and charitable leader, and 
philanthropist. I am deeply saddened by his sudden passing and offer my 
sympathies to his wife Marjorie and his children and grandchildren.

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