Welcome to The Communications Bringing Claims Professionals
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 Denise McCuckin |
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responsibilities in the Sacramento area. That is a plus for the Sacramento Claims Association. Gardnerville NV is a small town whose population 5,394, per their website, barely exceeds the elevation at 4,750 feet. Close to Lake Tahoe and an hour from Reno, the tiny town seems to have all the advantages of mountain living with just a few of the minor challenges. They have an active and enthusiastic support group that is working to keep businesses and residents from joining the flow to Stateline. Denise notes that it’s a positive that even with the current economic woes the property values seem to have been only slightly affected. Denise was right there during the dramatic fires in the South Lake Tahoe area known as the Angora Fire (June 2007) and was involved when CSAA responded to the emergency. “Bob Black was the first manager on the scene” Denise remembers “and as the fires occurred on a Sunday, the crew of the South Lake Tahoe AAA office was issuing Visa cards for lodging, food and necessities to AAA insureds on Monday morning. All of the staff did a great job with helping the residents to recover from the devastation. While the catastrophe was well-managed, the area is forever changed” Denise continues, “The fire created jobs for a time but it devastated the area. There are still many lots for sale where people didn’t rebuild. Where the neighborhood was once a mix of large and small, old and new homes, the rebuilds are all larger and multi-story. This increased square footage limits the kind of neighborhood that is possible. The environment is negatively impacted as well’ she went on “ the trees were a buffer zone for wind and snow that absorbed hundreds of gallons of water and now that they’re gone the water tables are up and there is erosion and excessive water that is causing problems in house foundations and on the roads. The overall full time population has decrease in the past few years as some folks whose children were grown have chosen to leave the area for lower elevations where they don’t have the issues of weather and tourism to contend with. ” Denise was working as a Ranger for the Forest Service in the summers and as a Supervisor of ticket sales at Heavenly Valley during the winters. She was working a fire in Hayfork for the Forest Service in the summer of 1987 when a friend tracked her down to let her know that AAA was hiring an employee in Travel and Touring. The mother of two small boys, Denise got herself back to Tahoe in time to be hired as a permanent full-time employee of the carrier. After 4 years, she was trained as a claims adjuster handling most every aspect of AAA claims products; auto, subrogation, medical and in 1997, Homeowners claims for the small office. After the reorganization of AAA in 1998, Denise was offered the position of Homeowner Vendor Manager Specialist and accepted a job that at it’s inception, lacked a description of duties and “that has evolved much over the years”, Denise notes. “It’s still changing all the time” Denise laughs “there were 13 of us, now there are 8 and there are additional states to manage and that has created volume. The growth has made a situation that is not perfect, but it’s doable.” “The business in Oklahoma is growing very quickly, and an office in Oklahoma City will be open in a few months. When it’s fully staffed there will be 250 to 300 working there. That should help us out a great deal.” When her boys were young and in 4-H, Tyler and Adam raised Guide Dogs for the Blind. While the “idea” of this program is to successfully raise and graduate the dogs, approximately 50- 60% do not, and they would surely have an opportunity to adopt one of the pups that they raised; but that was not to be. All 3 of the dogs that they loved and raised graduated and went on to be valuable service dogs. Denise enjoys travel of all types, especially cruising and RVing’ with family and friends. She allows that they’re organized enough to enjoy small spaces- even their puppy is an 8# miniature long-haired dachshund that loves the snow. Fond of short hikes on snowshoes, they favor areas close to their home in Hope Valley and Luther Pass. Other favorites are a love of kayaking, biking, hiking and visiting the 2 sons that live in Southern California, ironically where Denise grew up.
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