Josh Ford, 2012 Tri-County Alum, insurance wholesaler

Josh Ford determined early in life he was going to excel. His parents had long been excellent role models for him. Said Josh, “they are both hard-working, and helped me pursue my goals.” A very important step for him was to receive an excellent education. The Tri-County Scholarship Fund provided all-important tuition help. It enabled him to attend Paterson Catholic High School for two years, where he helped them win 2 state championships, and after it closed, to attend DePaul Catholic High School. Josh excelled academically and athletically in both schools. He maintained a 3.89 grade point average, was in the National Honor Society, and was named to the 2012 Robeson Classic East-West All-Star Game as cornerback. Josh decided to attend Colgate University, where he once again excelled academically and athletically. He played Colgate football as a defensive back.

Said Josh,

“Colgate football has an excellent mentoring system that pairs each incoming football player with an alumnus. I was paired with John Kafaf, who was a great person to talk to throughout my college days and afterwards. He remains a close friend today.”

John and another Colgate alumnus mentored Josh about the business of insurance wholesaling as Josh was getting close to graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in History.

“A lot of skills required of history majors are relevant to wholesaling, such as having to thoroughly research prospects and construct strong product cases around prospects’ needs,” said Josh.

After graduating Josh went to work for Lincoln Financial Group as an Internal Wholesaler, where he learned how to present and sell long-term care policies to financial advisors and wealth managers with affluent clients. He achieved early success, and after four years moved on to Nationwide, where he works today as a Regional CareMatters Wholesaler. He has obtained his Series 6 & Series 63 licenses, life and health licenses, and the Certified Long-Term Care designation. He intends to also earn an MBA in the near future.

“I absolutely appreciate what Tri-County donors did for me,” states Josh. “Looking back, their help was tremendous for students like myself and my peers. I don’t know if there is any way to thank them properly, but I want to acknowledge that what they are doing is a great thing. It’s something I aspire to do once I’m in a similar position. They are giving people opportunities they definitely would not otherwise have; they just don’t have the financials. I appreciate everything donors are doing!"