Anthony Anderson, executive producer and star of the hit TV show Black-ish, and host of Eating America, is taking on a new role this fall as the 2015 national spokesperson for Life Insurance Awareness Month. The annual campaign, which takes place in September, is coordinated by the nonprofit organization Life Happens to encourage the more than 100 million Americans who do not have adequate life insurance to get the coverage they need.
As spokesperson for the campaign, Anderson will share his personal story of how he and his family were directly impacted life insurance and the importance of planning for the future through a series of national public service announcements (PSAs) and awareness-building efforts.
As a young boy growing up in Compton, Calif., Anderson saw the importance his family placed on life insurance. While his parents didn’t have much, they did have Mary – or as Anthony’s family called her, ‘The Insurance Lady.’ Mary was a fixture in the Anderson home, visiting the family throughout the year to review and update his parents’ life insurance policies. She even sold Anderson his first life insurance policy when he turned 18. Now, a husband and a father, Anderson understands why his parents made life insurance a priority, and has made it a priority for his family to be protected.
“Even on their limited income, my mom and dad instilled upon all of us the importance of planning for the future and the fact that tomorrow isn’t promised to anyone,” Anderson said. “I know how hard it is to lose someone you love. An accident took my brother when he was 26 and shortly after, I lost my father to diabetes, a disease I, myself, live with today. It was rough getting through those deaths, but the fact that they both had life insurance made it so much easier.”
According to the 2015 Insurance Barometer Study, conducted by Life Happens and LIMRA, most Americans continue to put other financial priorities ahead of purchasing life insurance. A major reason cited for not getting the coverage they need is cost; however 80 percent of consumers overestimate the price for term life insurance, the most affordable type of coverage. In fact, some overestimate the cost by more than 200 percent.
Despite his successful career, Anderson hasn’t forgotten about the financial safety net life insurance provides, or the importance of making it a financial priority. “Millions of people insure things like their high-def, flat screen TV, but don’t protect the people watching it! That’s something I hope I can help change by partnering with Life Happens,” Anderson said. “If you can buy a latte every now and then, you can afford a life insurance policy. It guarantees your loved ones will be taken care of if something happens to you.”
Anderson to Share His Story this September
Anderson will share his story on TV and radio PSAs broadcast nationally beginning this summer and continuing until the end of the year. The PSAs will be available on the Life Happens website, along with educational information and interactive tools and calculators to help consumers evaluate their own life insurance needs.
“Anthony’s story shows that regardless of your situation, if people depend on you, life insurance needs to be a financial priority. Unfortunately, while most people agree that it is important, millions still don’t have the coverage they desperately need to ensure their family will be taken care of,” said Marvin H. Feldman, CLU, ChFC, RFC, President and CEO of Life Happens. “An advocate for diabetes awareness and a loving father on and off camera, Anthony is a role model to so many and knows firsthand the importance of ensuring his family will be taken care of. We’re extremely pleased to have him share his experiences as the voice of our campaign and hope that together we can encourage more people to get life insurance to protect their families.”
For more information about Life Insurance Awareness Month and Anthony Anderson’s role as spokesperson, visit https://www.lifehappens.org/anthony/
