Ask Greg Ladendorf what it takes to succeed as a State Farm Insurance agent in Pekin, and he is likely to give a one-word answer: Trust.

“People trust us, and that’s the best thing you can have,” he said. That’s actually 11 words, but the point is the same. Families and individuals trust their insurance agent to help them make important life decisions. Hundreds have done just that since Ladendorf set up shop as a State Farm agent in 1988.

But Ladendorf’s “good neighbor” story doesn’t start there. Before becoming an agent, he worked at the State Farm corporate offices in Bloomington, first as a health insurance underwriter, and later in building operations and maintenance. The latter involved installing security systems at State Farm regional offices across the country. He believes he got the first position because of his experience as a Navy corpsman.

“Some time in my first year after graduating from high school I got drafted, even though I shouldn’t have been drafted because I was only 17,” Ladendorf said. He ended up joining the Navy anyway, but as a corpsman stationed at Camp Pendleton. He was never on a ship.

Although he has spent much of his adult life in Pekin, Ladendorf grew up in Roanoke. He said he first came to Pekin when he was about 22. In the years since, all of his children (three) were born and raised in Pekin, went to school in Pekin, and still live in Pekin. He said he briefly considered moving to Bloomington when he was at State Farm corporate but decided that it would be less disruptive to his family to stay put. He has never regretted it.

“This is home to me. I was hired to be a hometown agent, and that’s really why I stayed,” he said.

The insurance agency business was much different — and Ladendorf says more difficult — than when he was just starting out with a couple dozen accounts inherited from a retiring agent.

“It was like starting with absolutely nothing,” he recalled. “I remember making calls three nights a week, sometimes four. I worked Saturdays and sometimes even Sundays for two or three years.”

“I have always been very appreciative that State Farm offered me the opportunity to be an agent in Pekin,” Ladendorf added. “It was a great opportunity then and still is now. It’s one of the best decisions I ever made.”

He said some of the more experienced agents used to tell him to work hard, keep his head down for the first five years and then come up for breath. So that’s what he did. Besides himself, the agency now has two full-time employees and one part-time employee and manages a considerably larger book of clients.

“The people are the best part of it,” he said in explanation of why he has been in insurance for so long. “I also have a great staff and that makes my job easier.”

Being involved in the community is part of the job description for a State Farm agent. Ladendorf says the visibility is good for business and it also allows a small business owner like himself to give back. He was an active member of the Pekin AMBUCS for a number of years, served as a member of the St. Joseph’s Catholic School Board of Education, and coached softball and basketball for the Pekin Park District and Union Mission. 

The offices of the Greg Ladendorf agency are at 1614 Broadway, almost directly across the street from where it had been for nearly 12 years. He said the new stand-alone building is much more visible, has a better parking lot, and features a drive-up window where clients can make payments without getting out of the car.

“It’s worked out great and enhanced our business,” he said. The agency offers a full line of State Farm insurance products for individuals, families, and businesses.

Learn more about the Greg Ladendorf State Farm agency and get a quote at www.gregladendorf.com, or call 309-347-3007. Regular office hours are Monday to Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday or after hours by appointment.