Agent built her office from the ground up

When Carol Drake moved to a new part of Henderson in 1977, she never suspected the direction her life would take.

In the early 1980s she was in a car accident that changed her life. It was minor with no serious injuries, but through the experience she met Jeff Harrington of State Farm Insurance. After the incident, Harrington offered Drake a job in insurance.

Drake, who earned a degree in commercial design from the University of Illinois in her native Chicago, liked the idea of a new career in her new hometown. In 1983, she became one of a handful of women in Southern Nevada to have her own insurance office.

She started the office from scratch, without a single client, and now coordinates the policies of more than 2,500 families and has five employees.

"I love it. It's constant. You're continually learning," she said.

Throughout her 20 years in Henderson she has kept her office in the Green Valley area, near her home. Her original office opened on Sunset Road and seven years ago she moved to her own building on Green Valley Parkway and Windmill Road.

"I think I had it in my head all along that I would have my own building," Drake said.

Not only has her business grown, but Drake has seen the area grow as well.

"The changes are dramatic," she said. "When I moved to this office there was hardly anything beyond Wigwam."

Even with the growth and changes, she said Henderson has kept its small-town atmosphere.

"It's such a small community when you've been there so many years," Drake said.

The insurance agent is willing to take risks, as well. In her travels she has been to many places, including on a safari in Africa.

Despite a love for traveling, Drake said her true "hobby" is spending time with her two children.

On Thursday from 4 to 7 p.m. the Henderson Chamber of Commerce will hold its monthly mixer at Drake's office, 1913 N. Green Valley Parkway, in honor of her 20th anniversary in Green Valley.


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