Day Insurance celebrating 50-year milestone anniversary
A half-century ago, Steve Day Sr. launched a business in his hometown that was intended to ensure local residents would be properly insured.
It was a new venture – a new day – for the Washington resident. “My father started it from scratch,” Scott Day said recently, of an endeavor that has progressed from a scratch existence to one that has made an indelible mark in the community, serving residents throughout
Southwestern Pennsylvania.
Day Insurance Agency Inc. is celebrating a milestone 50th anniversary in the city. The agency made its maiden voyage on Feb. 1, 1974, before relocating to a modest, well-appointed home at 329 E. Maiden St., where it has operated for 44 years.
Day Insurance started as an agent for American General Life Insurance Co. before switching to Erie Insurance years ago, providing coverage for auto, home, life and other insurances.
Known informally as Steve Day Insurance, the business is a testament to the founder, a Washington resident who is 81 and fully retired. He turned over the business to sons Scott and Steve Jr. in 2004 and left the work-a-day world during the early months of the pandemic. The sons oversee a staff of 10.
In reality, the father has not left entirely. “We gave a consultant’s fee to him for 15 years,” Scott said, laughing. “We go to lunch a couple of times a week and he asks how things are going.”
It is a family business, to be sure. Day Insurance also has a location on Main Street in Hickory, run by Emily Day-Rush, Scott Day’s daughter. Yet there is a familial atmosphere as well, extending beyond kin. Scott said the agency has a history of retaining longtime employees, including some who have stayed on following retirement.
Scott and Steve Jr., the partners, are in the midst of a year-long celebration of this anniversary. “It’s a nice way to say ‘thank you,'” Scott said. They are planning an open house for April 11 at the East Maiden office, an event that may draw more than 100 agents, adjusters and other Erie Insurance personnel.
“We’ve never had a retirement party for Steve Day,” Scott said of his father.
Store opening
A Dollar General store has opened at 1890 Chestnut St. in North Franklin Township.
Dollar General, based in Goodlettsville, Tenn., strives to provide household goods at affordable and convenient store locations. The company said in a news release that this location features “the new stylish, on-trend home décor and an expanded party preparation selection.”
It added that it plans to employ about six to 10 people, depending on needs at the store. The company said it pays competitive wages and provides “world-class and award-winning training and development programs and benefits.”
The company reaches out to communities through the Dollar General Literacy Foundation, and this new store will provide opportunities for schools, nonprofits and libraries within a 15-mile radius to apply for Dollar General Literacy Foundation grants. For more information, visit www.dgliteracy.com.
Legal honor
Susan Mondik Key, retired partner at Peacock Keller LLP in Washington, will be honored by the Pennsylvania Bar Association’s Conference of County Bar Leaders on March 1.
She will receive the Gilbert Nurick Award at the 58th annual Conference of County Bar Leaders in Gettysburg.
The award is named for the late Harrisburg lawyer who served as PBA president. It is given to a PBA member who, according to a news release, exhibits dedication and service to the leadership and promotion of the organized bar and its activities.
Key worked at Peacock Keller for 19 years, focusing her practice on estate planning and administration, estate litigation and elder law issues. She also represented school districts in tax assessment litigation.