‘It’s heartwarming to give back to people’
If you Google Thele Moore, you find links and pictures of her volunteering with the Coan Tennis Association, the NAACP in DeKalb County, Georgia, the National Alliance of Mental Illness, the local Kiwanis Club and Habitat for Humanity. Thele is convinced it’s why she heard something recently she’d wanted to hear for years.
“It was a neighborhood lady who came up to me and said, ‘You’re the insurance lady,’” she remembers. “I’m like, ‘Oh my God, I’ve been wanting to be known as the insurance lady forever.
“I take initiative to give back. I think when people see me out there on a regular basis, they want to do business with me.”
Thele sees her community involvement as an extension of her work as an agency owner. In both areas, she shows up when people are down. Before COVID, she would hold a brunch at her house right after Thanksgiving for around 100 friends and nonprofits.
“I would just have more business in December each year. I’m sure it was because I had my flyers on my tablecloth because I often forget to tell people that I sell insurance,” she says with a laugh. “Whenever there’s a cause, an opportunity, I tend to hop in and get involved.”
Recently, Thele volunteered at the Soccer in the Streets event and Habitat for Humanity build organized by American Family Insurance in the Atlanta area. She sees her involvement as part of her “Spread Moore Kindness” initiative.
“I love to live, work and play in the community, so I love giving back to my community and being in a position to give back. It’s rewarding,” she says. “The best part with Habitat was when the new homeowner came by and saw what we were doing to her house and how we transformed that place in one day.
“It’s just heartwarming to have an opportunity to give back to people. I believe that you can’t always expect somebody else to do it. You gotta be willing to do the work yourself.”
And that’s why her community neighbors know Thele as more than just the “insurance lady,” even if that’s the title she likes best.
At American Family Insurance, we believe that social impact doesn’t start or end with a check. So we focus on bringing our mission — to inspire, protect and restore dreams — to life in our communities. When our local agency owners and their teams give of their time and dollars, they often do so in the company of others — part of a support network of volunteers and donors. But those they benefit notice their impact.
