Month: August 2018

Wedding Season

For most of us, wedding season is an exciting and joyous time of year for us to celebrate and go to fancy parties. We go shopping and plan out exactly what to wear. If we’re spending so much time on the wedding then we need to make sure that we’re getting all of the appropriate coverages as well.

An unfortunate accident can turn the best day of your life into a disaster in all but 30 seconds. This is easily preventable by calling your insurance agency and going over the details. Depending on where you’re having the wedding, if there’s going to be alcohol at the wedding, the rules of your reception hall, and any additional coverages you may need to add for your own comfort and peace of mind.

If you are having alcohol at your wedding/reception you will need a liquor liability policy. These are usually pretty cheap and only for the Big Day. This is more of a “need” than a “want”. You never know what will happen with alcohol and your guests. It’s usually out of your control. This policy will protect you and usually your reception hall will require this anyway.

You’ll want to schedule your rings (or any other expensive wedding gifts or jewelry) onto your home policy to guarantee coverage for those high value items. Many people assume that all of their jewelry is covered no matter what, however, high value items require special coverage AND scheduling an item on your policy includes special perils so you’ll be covered from a wider array of situations. Keep colored photos and appraisals on hand and be sure to submit them to your insurance company as well. According to Trusted Choice, 96% of stolen jewelry is never recovered. Don’t take the chance of being the 4% that does recover the jewelry.

Wedding Traditions Explained:

1. The origin of the “First Look” concept started during the time of arranged marriages, where it was believed that if the bride and groom saw each other before the big day, they would have enough time to call off the wedding.

2. The origin of the Bridesmaids are quite different from what they are today. They originally wore similar dresses as the bride and walked close by to confuse any exes or “evil spirits” that may have come for the bride. They would also serve as a protective shield while walking the bride to the groom’s village in order to keep anyone from trying to hurt the bride or steal her dowry.

3. The Best Man used to play quite a different role than they do presently. Way back when, the duty of the best man was to ensure that the runaway bride didn’t escape from the wedding. When the bride’s parents didn’t approve of the union, the best man was asked to make sure the groom would be able to take his bride regardless of how her father felt. The term “best man” came from this because they were usually the strongest and fastest in order to effectively do his job.

4. Up until about 1840, brides traditionally wore a red wedding dress. It was Queen Victoria who went against the trend and wore white. The idea caught on, and now white is the traditional color for a wedding dress.

5. The origin of the honeymoon is also much different than present day meaning. The honeymoon was used by the groom to hide his bride from her tribe for about a month so that they wouldn’t know where to find her if any “rescue missions” were planned. Similar to the idea of the best man and his duties during the ceremony.  This helped ensure that the groom could keep his bride and no escapes or kidnappings would occur.

For more wedding traditions explained, visit this website for many more! https://www.southernliving.com/weddings/history-wedding-traditions#origin-of-bride-carried-over-threshold-getty-image

Share your wedding stories with us!

Do I actually need life insurance?

It’s Life Insurance Awareness Month! We’re raising awareness here and we want to help you with ALL of your insurance needs.

Let’s face it, society buys insurance for their bodies, homes, vehicles, recreational toys and even their animals but hesitate to buy life insurance to protect their family’s future.  Why is that?  Life insurance is one of the greatest gifts you can ever give your family.  71% of people say they need life insurance yet only 59% have a policy. 

Many people say, “I have a policy through work.”  If your employer provides you with a life insurance policy, that is a wonderful benefit however, what happens when you leave that job or (heaven forbid) lose that job?  You also lose that policy.  Purchasing your own policy is best so no matter what obstacles life throws at you, your life insurance policy will remain intact and you will have the comfort and peace of knowing that your family is protected in event of an accident.   

So why are people so hesitant about purchasing life insurance? 

1. It’s too expensive.  Not true, it is too expensive to not have life insurance.  If you are proactive and purchase a policy in your 20’s, 30’s or 40’s you will pay far less and will be able to lock in your low price for up to 30 years.  If you wait until you are in your 50’s and 60’s, it will certainly cost you more.  See the sample rates below:

Age	Gender	$250,000; 30 year term policy
25	Male	$22.00/month
25	Female	$18.00/month
35	Male	$26.00/month
35	Female	$22.00/month
45	Male	$57.00/month
45	Female	$45.00/month
55	Male	$155.00/month
55	Female	$109.00/month

 ** All rates are subject to underwriting approval

 ** Preferred Non-smoking rates shown above

 

2. I don’t want to have a medical exam.  The sooner you buy life insurance the more likely it is that you will not have a medical exam.  Technology has improved in the world of insurance underwriting and many applicants are able to secure life insurance without having to submit to a medical exam.  If you do need to have a medical exam, the exam is done in the comfort of your own home and is not invasive.  They take your weight, a small amount of blood, a urine sample and take your blood pressure.  The process is fast and no charge to the customer. 

Those are the top two reasons why people wait to purchase life insurance.  Hopefully we have demonstrated that it is not in your best interest to wait.  You never know what the future holds.  It is better to be 5 years early purchasing your life insurance policy, than 5 seconds too late.  

 Give Chris, our life insurance specialist, a call today for your free no obligation quote.  616-897-1515 x 119

Summer is coming to a close and autumn is almost here!

 It’s our last weekend to get the family out for a camping trip before it’s too cold. The days are starting to get shorter and the flannel and boots are coming out of storage. Make sure you take your time and enjoy this Labor Day with friends and family. Sleep in, have a good breakfast, and get outside to seize the day! Who doesn’t love a three day weekend?!

Whether it’s taking a relaxing, secluded vacation with your friends and family or going to a big event for the weekend, this is the last holiday weekend for summertime so be sure to soak it all up!

No matter where you are in Michigan, there’s plenty of festivals and other fun events to attend! Let us help you out with some ideas for the holiday!  

We have (my personal favorite) the Michigan Chicken Wing Festival in Lansing: not only can we celebrate chicken wings with our loved ones but you can also join the chicken wing tastings to help determine which vendor has the best wings.

Marquette Blues Fest: If you enjoy Pure Michigan and some good Blues music then this is for you! There will also be a beer and wine tent, plenty of food vendors, and workshops! Don’t miss out!

Salsa Festival at Harbor Beach: Go out on the beach and taste all sorts of homemade salsas! The salsa will be amazing and when you’re finished you can enjoy the quiet town and peaceful atmosphere.

Labor Day Truck Parade and Ice Cream Social in Holland: If you have children, this is the place for you! Come down to see the big trucks and have some sweet dessert!

There are all also Bridge Walks all over the state! This is a great way to get outdoors and get some fresh, clean air while spending time with friends and family. There are bridge walks in Mackinac, Saugatuck, Charlevoix, Cedar River, Traverse City, and Grand Haven. Don’t miss out on these opportunities to get some exercise and spend some quality time with friends!

While celebrating this weekend, make sure you insure your travel trailer and take all the necessary precautions while driving. It’s going to be a busy weekend because of the holiday so you’ll want to be careful of those around you. We also have a list of travel tips for you on our blog from last year. Check these out if you’re going on a road trip this weekend.

You’ll need to insure all of your recreational vehicles that you use this weekend, just to be safe. You can always put them back into storage after the holiday but this way, you’re covered. Recreational vehicles can include travel trailers, RV’s, quads, ATV’s, side by sides, motorcycles, antique autos, and boats.

Pink Arrow Pride 2018

For those of us driving down Main Street in Lowell, we are all aware of the bold, hot pink t shirts hanging on both sides of the street! We ALL know what this means… it’s Pink Arrow season! Our favorite time of year and our biggest football game of the season! This will take place on August 30^th (yes, a Thursday) and will be up against Rockford High School!

Don’t worry, there are PLENTY of exciting activities leading up to the game for everyone to enjoy. We have Pink Arrow games for all Fall Sports so feel free to attend one of your choosing, they will all be exciting! On September 8^th the 2018 Quiver 5k Run will be held in download Lowell. NEW this year is the Kid’s 1 mile Fun Run at 9:30am for only $15. For more info visit: http://pinkarrowpride.org/page8/page8.html

Don’t forget to purchase your PINK shirt to get in the game free and cheer on your home town football team while supporting a good cause! Kickoff for the football game is at 7 pm but the Pink Arrow activities will start that day (Thursday, August 30^th) after school until the end of the game. There will be plenty of things to participate in so go and have a blast while hanging with friends and supporting a good cause with your community! What a great way for Lowell to stand out as a community, let’s embrace that and show everyone what Lowell is about! 

Pink Arrow Pride focuses on raising awareness for the treatment and cure of many different forms of cancer. A huge part of this is in honor of a former Lowell teacher and coach who lost her battle with cancer, Kathy Talus, and Dr. Gerard who dedicated 30+ years to Lowell Student Athletes.

FOR MORE INFO: http://www.pinkarrowpride.org/

Another festival coming up fast is the Fallasburg Arts Festival! It’s at Fallasburg Park and on September 15-16 from 10 am – 5 pm each day. Plenty of food, crafts, arts and fun to be had! For more info visit: https://www.lowellartsmi.org/fallasburg-arts-festival

Share your favorite part of Pink Arrow Season with us! Whether it’s your favorite activity or just a funny story, we want to hear it!

Please share or tag us in your Pink Arrow photos so we can see how much fun you’re having!

We’re SO excited and we’ll see you all next Thursday at the Pink Arrow Pride Football Game!

It’s our favorite time of year at Alliance! School is starting, and that means that football is starting too! Make sure you get all of the back to school deals and your child is ready to go this year. You want your child prepped for success and confident on their first day! This year, our schools are starting sooner than they ever have before so we all feel somewhat rushed. It’s time to relax, we’ve created your back to school shopping list for you!

– Pencil pack (at least 5, these break often and get lost easily)

– Pens (see above)

– Pencil/pen bag

– Highlighters (2, different colors)

– 3 ring binder

– Loose leaf paper

– Loose leaf graph paper

– Notebooks (probably 3 will do)

– Index cards

– Plastic folders (MUCH more durable, worth the extra $1.50)

– Ruler

– Calculator

– Planner or calendar (keep track of assignments and practices)

– Backpack

– Lunch box

EXTRA CREDIT – it’s always kind to bring some extra supplies for the classroom too. Tissues, dry erase markers, colored pencils, staples, etc. There are many classroom essentials that the state no longer provides and teachers are responsible for getting. Many hands make light work, if everyone pitches in and donates a little to the classroom then your child’s classroom environment will be a much more positive place. This way the teacher can start off the year right and your child can get the education they deserve!

 For those of us in Lowell, be sure to check the school website for all events coming up! It’s the start of busy season and we want to be prepared! http://www.lowellschools.com/

All Lowell sports schedules can be found here: https://redarrowathletics.com/events

Don’t forget – the Lowell Pink Arrow game is on August 30^th and we’re up against Rockford, come support your home town and a good cause!

What are you most excited for this school year? Let us know!