Fund Raising and Events: Circle of Life

Robert Adams
A true community leader

The Honoree Robert A. Adams, Director and Vice Chairman of Great American Financial Resources in Cincinnati, Ohio, is a true business and community leader, who has made it a point to give generously of his time to both the life insurance industry and his community.

Adams received his B.B.A. from the University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1968. After serving nine years as a CPA with Ernst & Young, he began his successful career with Great American in 1977 and has been there ever since.

In addition to serving on the MDRT Foundation Board of Trustees, his industry involvement also included the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Ohio Society of Certified Public Accountants, the Association of Ohio Life Insurance Companies and the Insurance Companies Financial Roundtable.

His extensive community involvement includes serving as Chairman and as a member of the board of trustees at the Bethesda Foundation. He has also served on the board at Bethesda Hospital, Great American Life Children's Foundation, Miami University Business Advisory Council and the University of Cincinnati Athletic Advisory Board. His other involvements include serving as a member of Bethesda, Inc., the Character Council of Greater Cincinnati & Northern Kentucky and Insure the Children.

Bob and his wife, Sheilah, reside in Cincinnati, Ohio, and have four children and one grandchild.

Adams - Circle of Life Winner Reaches Out to Children

Begun in 1999, the award offers a way for the MDRT Foundation to pay tribute to a Knight who exemplifies a generous nature, a charitable spirit, strong community involvement and industry leadership. This award is given to an individual whose generosity and compassion extends far beyond himself to touch many lives.

Adams and his three adult children all are involved in reaching out to high-risk children. "I'm really proud that my children give a lot of their time to volunteer. They can see the difference between the lives they had growing up, and the lives of some of these high-risk kids," Adams said.

Adams has been able to show his children the value of getting involved by being a role model. He is or has recently been involved with several community groups, including the Bethesda Foundation (of Cincinnati, Ohio), Bethesda Hospital (of Cincinnati, Ohio), Character Council of Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky, Great American Life Children's Foundation, Insurance Companies Financial Roundtable, Insure the Children, Miami University (of Ohio), the MDRT Foundation, Association of Ohio Life Insurance Companies, and the University of Cincinnati.

"My goal is to help children become responsible adults," Adams said. "These high-risk children have been so deprived of nurturing that they don't understand the value of life. If we don't get involved with these children now, they will have little chance of living normal, happy lives, and we'll see a deterioration in the quality of life for everyone."

One program that Adams is particularly proud of is the Great American Life Children's Foundation through which he is working on the Team Leadership program, which trains Texas high school teachers how to engage children when they come into their classrooms. "Often, kids just need to know that some one is there for them," Adams said. "And this program helps connect teachers to their students."

Much of Adams' charitable work is focused on getting other people to get involved. "A lot of people are interested in doing charitable work, but they need some structure and inspiration," Adams said. "I think all of us can see that we need to get involved, not just with our money, but with our time. A lot of what I do is trying to get others involved and exposed to the areas that need their help. There are a lot of genuine caring people that could make a real difference in the world."

Because there are so many wonderful people in MDRT and involved in the MDRT Foundation, Adams said that the Circle of Life Award "is very humbling for me."

The Circle of Life gala will be held on Monday, April 30, in Cincinnati, Ohio, to honor Adams and to help raise money for the MDRT Foundation and a charity designated by him.

This article originally appeared in the January/February 2001 issue of Round the Table magazine.