Ashley Hunter: Greene Publishing, Inc.
When Lance Braswell took over the Jefferson, Madison, Taylor and Lafayette Counties' Farm Bureau Agencies after Freddy Pitts stepped down in January of 2018, he had big shoes to fill.
Since then, however, Braswell has done well at managing the four offices under his direction and continuing the Farm Bureau legacy that Freddy Pitts helped install.
Insurance and farming have been in Braswell's history long before he ever began working for Florida Farm Bureau, though.
Growing up, Braswell's father was both a farmer, as well as a Farm Bureau Agent himself.
“My dad grew corn and tobacco,” said Braswell, adding that later on, hay was added to the list of crops.
A native of Greenville, Braswell grew up in Madison County on his dad's farm until he was eight years old, when his family made the move to Lafayette County.
There in Lafayette county, his family began growing hay (rather than corn or tobacco) and his father was no longer a full-time farmer, but began working for Florida Farm Bureau as an agent.
Braswell said that his family continued to grow and bale hay until around 2002.
Throughout middle school and high school, Braswell grew up on a Lafayette County hay farm, and watched his father dedicate what would, ultimately, become 24 years of loyal dedication to Florida Farm Bureau.
After graduating from high school, Braswell attended Mississippi College, a Christian university in Clinton, Miss.
Right after graduating, Braswell says he began working at Northwestern Mutual, a life insurance agency and financial planning company, where he would work for seven years. “It gave me a lot of good experience,” adds Braswell.
He continued to work for Northwestern Mutual until Braswell's father, Steve Braswell, chose to retire after 24 years at Florida Farm Bureau – some of those years had been spent working alongside Jefferson and Madison's Freddy Pitts.
“When my dad decided to retire, Mr. Freddy called me,” said Braswell.
They spoke about Florida Farm Bureau, and about the seat that Steve Braswell was about to leave empty following his retirement, and Pitts offered the job to Braswell.
“I've always been a huge fan of the company and had a lot of respect for them. I saw how well they treated my dad and Mr. Freddy and how well they treated their members and clients,” said Braswell.
It was an offer, Braswell says, he couldn't resist. In January of 2007, Braswell left Northwestern Mutual for Florida Farm Bureau, and hasn't looked back since.
Eleven years later, in January of 2018, Lance Braswell would move up into yet another emptied desk chair as Freddy Pitts stepped down and turned the operations of Jefferson, Madison, Taylor and Lafayette County's Farm Bureau Agencies over to the Greenville native.
Now, as the Agency Manager, Braswell hopes to see the Farm Bureau Agencies he oversees continue to be recognized not only as an insurance office that 'doesn't just offer insurance', but also for relationships and service.
“We want our members to know how much we care about them when they come in and leave,” said Braswell.
He hopes to see Florida Farm Bureau grow in the four counties, but only in the 'right way'.
They aren't about pounding numbers, scooping up as many customers as possible and meeting impossible quotas, but rather, he wants to continue the work that Freddy Pitts' agencies fostered in the communities through trust, word-of-mouth advertisement and referrals.
“We want to grow the right way through building relationship,” said Braswell. “We don't want to be the 1-800 number that people call off the TV commercial.”
Lance Braswell has been married to his wife, Holly, since 1999, and the couple have two children: a 17-year-old son named Blake, and a 13-year-old daughter named Mia.
“Both are very involved in their school and help me out with my work at times,” said Braswell proudly.
Their family is very involved in their church as well.
Want to learn more about the benefits of a membership through the Madison County Florida Farm Bureau agency? The agency can be reached at (850) 973-4071.