So long 2020… it’s been a year to remember. We would like to take this time to wish all of our clients, friends, family and associates a very Happy New Year! We are looking forward to a new year, filled with the hope that we will see an end to the COVID-19 pandemic, be reunited (in-person!) with our Team, and be able to give big giant hugs to all of our friends and family.
As in previous years, 2020 started off like every other year with our Team attending the Calgary Motorcycle Show from January 10th- 12th. We handed out our motorcycle calendars, pens, keychains, stickers and candy. We also had two great draws, one for a $200.00 Pro-Am Motorcycles gift card, and other for a chance to win up to $1,000 off insurance premiums. Unfortunately, the Calgary Motorcycle Show has been cancelled for 2021 due to the pandemic. We are hoping to see you there in 2022!
From February 27th – March 1st, we attended the Calgary Home and Garden Show. There was a steady flow of trade show traffic and we had the chance to speak with some great people and business owners. We held a prize draw and gave away some other great Costen swag. We are booked in to attend the show again this coming February from the 25th – 28th, and are anxiously waiting to see if it will be able to go ahead. Stay tuned!
By March 2020, the coronavirus had arrived in Canada and by mid-month, we moved our Team to working from home. Check out this little “Working from Home” video that we put together in the spring.
Our annual IBAA (Insurance Brokers Association of Alberta) convention was postponed until Fall 2020 and then later cancelled due to the pandemic. We were looking forward to connecting with all of our insurance company representatives and fellow Brokers. We are not sure how things will look for the convention in 2021, but are hoping that it will go ahead in one form or another (we’re getting pretty used to all of these Zoom events!).
All of our remaining trade shows and events, including Two Wheel Sunday, our Stampede Breakfast, and the HOG Rally were all cancelled for 2020. We are hoping to be able to attend some of these great events in 2021.
We welcomed three new Team members this year, including Dan Dunsmore in January, Danielle Golanowski in February, and Sanjay Chadha in April. It has been an absolute pleasure working with them over the last year, and they have done amazingly well integrating into the Costen Family during a worldwide pandemic and working from home! We are sad to announce that Danielle has relocated back to BC this December, but we are so very excited for her and her family for what lies ahead. We have a new Broker joining us in February 2021. Stay tuned to learn more!
We celebrated several anniversaries again this year, the big ones being thirteen (13) years for both Andrew Shareski and Nirmal Lombsar, ten (10) years for Kristel Wilson, nine (9) years for Karen Sandeman, and twenty-two (22) years for Crista Costen. We are so fortunate to have such amazing people as part of the Costen Family!
After a busy and somewhat unusual summer, a few of us celebrated the end of the summer holidays with our annual Team get together socially-distance style in beautiful Bowness Park. With our chairs parked 6+ feet away from one another, we visited and enjoyed some Little Ceasars pizza. Jana from Miko Photography also met us at the park and took pictures for each of the Team members.
In October, several of our Team members raised funds for the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society through their Take Back the Night fundraiser. This year, the event was held virtually. We all watched the virtual event from the comfort of our warm homes, and then headed outside for a short walk in the freezing cold October temperatures!
Our designated charity partner for 2020 and beyond is the Helping Families Handle Cancer Foundation. Despite everything 2020 threw at us, it was another successful year with referrals (Thank You) and we are looking forward to sending them a donation at the end of the year. For more information on this great charity or how you can help, please visit their website.
We have been working hard on building up the content on our Youtube channel this year. If you have hadn’t a chance to check out our channel, please visit us here! Here is one of our most recent videos, highlighting our Customer Referral Program and our charity partner:
A friendly reminder that our Customer Survey 2020 closes THIS Thursday, December 31st. If you would like to complete the survey for a chance to WIN a $200.00 VISA gift card, please click here. We appreciate your feedback!
With the many challenges that we faced as a Team and as individuals this year, we know how important mental health can be. We would like to share this link for some great resources that you may find helpful.
We would also like to remind you that the majority of our Team is working from home, with limited staff in the Office. We are currently closed for walk-ins, but can be reached in any of the following ways:
- Phone / Text at 403-245-2424
- E-mail at admin@costeninsurance.com
- Live Chat from our website
- myCosten, our online portal and mobile app
If you are planning on traveling over the holidays or in the new year, don’t forget to purchase your Travel Insurance. Many of our insurer partners are now offering coverage for COVID-19, which can be purchased in addition to Emergency Hospital and Medical coverage.
From our family to yours… we hope that you have a very Happy New Year 2021!
Our Team looks forward to providing you with excellent customer service and new and innovative products and services in the years ahead. All the best for an amazing 2021!
The Costen Insurance Team
