Our Founder's Story
Alvin H. Deitrich, Jr.
In 1979 I had a life-changing event. Thanks to a friend, who saw something in me as a young man, he encouraged me to join the insurance company. I thought this would be a temporary position to provide for my family as I searched for my purpose.
A few things happened in my first 9 months which made it evident that this was not a job or career but a calling, a purpose, a ministry. In one of the cases, my oldest son Kevin was with me the day I delivered a death claim check to the now widow and her family. He still remembers that day, just as it stays with me.
You see, two individuals passed away during that time and I was asked to deliver the death benefits to their families. First, was my aunt in her 70’s, that was an eye opener. That might not sound like a big deal to you, but it was my introduction to the needs in the retirement marketplace. Next, it was to the family of a fellow agent. He and I worked together on a plan for the family just in case! I was able to provide them with hope, security, and comfort on the worst day of their life. Their financial futures were protected by our earlier efforts by planning for such a time as this.
I realized I needed to build a solution-based environment that would last for generations. Serving not only my current clients but their children and grandchildren. This propelled me to create what would eventually become, 1st Choice Financial Services, Inc.. Therefore, I became fully independent, which allowed me to work with many companies, offering many products and the chance to solve the financial needs of more and more people. In that same period of time, I began focusing our services in the senior market, where we continue working today with retirement planning, safe money strategies, investment strategies, tax strategies and estate planning solutions.
What I continue to see to this day is that money is generational, and money doesn’t care who it serves, or what it’s told to do. It is important to be intentional and proactive in your planning for your future. We are a family business built on a solution-based environment with carefully crafted strategies to effectively meet the needs of our clients. That’s our mission.
