Unum receives American Heart Association leadership award

American Heart Association From left, Mike Simonds, Unum president and CEO; Nicole Nappi, Unum quality auditor for group underwriting; Elizabeth DiSotto, Unum AVP partner management; Lena Minervino, the association’s development director; and Brian Shankey, the association’s executive director for Northern New England.

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By Alexis Wells

Unum Group (NYSE: UNM), the disability insurer and group benefits provider with a significant presence in Maine, was presented with the American Heart Association's regional Corporate Leadership award for supporting the association’s lifesaving work in Maine.

Unum received one of six awards presented in the Association's Eastern States region, which includes 14 states from Maine to Virginia and the District of Columbia.

"Unum has participated in the Maine Heart Walk for many years; Mike Simonds served as the 2021 Maine Heart Walk chair leading that campaign by increasing the number of Heart Walk teams and corporate fundraising efforts," said Lena Minervino, the American Heart Association’s development director. "Mike is an advocate for health equity, diversity, and inclusion in the workforce. Utilizing their own internal communications, Unum raised awareness about heart disease and stroke, shared prevention tips and risk factor mitigation by sharing the Association's lifesaving messages with their employees."

Mike Simonds, president and CEO of Unum, received the award along with Nicole Nappi, Unum’s quality auditor for group underwriting, and Elizabeth DiSotto, Unum’s AVP partner management, on Oct. 27 at Unum’s corporate office in Portland.

Minervino and Brian Shankey, the American Heart Association’s executive director for Northern New England, presented the award.

“Heart disease and strokes impact families everywhere — including here in Maine,” said Simonds “It’s a privilege to partner with the American Heart Association to ensure access to health resources and programming. Together, we are making a difference.”

The company's roots date to the 1848 founding of Union Mutual Life Insurance Co. in Portland. The company still employs 2,501 to 3,000 people in the Portland area. Unum was ranked No. 8 among the largest private employers in the 2022 Mainebiz Book of Lists, based on the average monthly employment as of June 30, 2021.

The American Heart Association has grown into the nation's oldest and largest voluntary organization dedicated to fighting heart disease and stroke, with more than 35 million volunteers and supporters and more than 2,900 employees. The American Heart Association has invested more than $5 billion in research, which makes them the largest not-for-profit funding source for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease research next to the federal government.