EAST PROVIDENCE – Natale “Nat” Calamis, a 35-year industry veteran, has been elected president and CEO of the Starkweather & Shepley Insurance Brokerage Inc. He will replace Fred Tripp, who has been planning to retire after 40 years, the firm said.

Starkweather recently acquired The Preston Agency Inc. of East Greenwich, the firm said in a simultaneous announcement. Financial terms were not disclosed.

“The Preston Agency is Starkweather & Shepley’s first acquisition under our new management team,” Calamis noted. Other recent acquisitions by the firm include the October 2007 purchase of Stabile and Associates LLC in Warwick. (READ MORE)

The East Greenwich firm – founded in 1949 as Weston and Watson Insurance Agency – has 37 employees serving 6,000 clients nationwide. Bill Preston, its president since 1985, and Bob Preston, its executive vice president, “are credited with transforming the agency from a small family-run business selling personal lines to one of the fastest-growing agencies in the state,” Starkweather said in a statement.

“It’s an excellent strategic and cultural fit,” added Bill Preston. “It’s good for our employees and for our clients, and it will allow us to expand the services we can offer.

The Preston staff will continue in their current office in East Greenwich, and no reduction in personnel is anticipated, Calamis said. The acquisition “provides the clients of both companies with a greater choice of products and services,” he said.

The deal is expected to boost Starkweather’s total annual premiums to $345 million.

Calamis – previously the executive vice president and secretary of Starkweather & Shepley, and the president of Starkweather & Shepley Inc. of Massachusetts – is the firm’s 12th president. He will continue to serve as a trustee of the firm and a member of the board of directors.

He has been with the firm for 31 years, since joining Starkweather as an account agent in the commercial lines division in 1978, and previously had worked at Liberty Mutual Insurance Co. for another four years.

He also is a former professional baseball player. Calamis played in the Detroit Tigers minor-league system after graduating from St. John’s University in 1972. He played college ball, rising to co-captain of the baseball team at St. John’s and receiving recognition as an honorable mention All-American in the sport. He has been honored by his alma mater with the St. John’s University Outstanding Alumni Achievement Medal, the Coach Jack Kaiser Baseball Advocate Award in 2003 and the Pietas Medal in 2007.

Active in the community, Calamis currently serves as co-chairperson of the Right Charitable Foundation; a member of the board of incorporators for Kent Hospital; and a member of the national advisory board for the Hartford Insurance Co. He also has served as chairman of the Quidnessett Country Club in North Kingstown; co-chair of the capital campaign at St. John’s; a member of the advisory council for Atlantic Mutual and Pro Mutual; and a member of the board of trustees of the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Rhode Island, which honored him as its 1989 Person of the Year.

He lives in Warwick with his wife, Ellen.

Starkweather & Shepley Insurance Brokerage Inc. is a provider of life, property, auto and other insurance to individuals and the financial, food-service, maritime, manufacturing, retail, medical and utility industries via its headquarters in East Providence and branch offices in East Greenwich, Newport, Warwick, Westerly, Westwood, Mass., and Martha’s Vineyard. The company was honored by PBN and Best Companies Group as one of the 2008 Best Places to Work in Rhode Island. (READ MORE) It will mark its 130th year in 2009. For additional information, visit www.StarkweatherShepley.com.