W OM E N OF A C HI EV EM EN T
Pa m H ern do n Lice n s e d In s uran ce Age n t an d Charte red Fin an cial P rofe s s ion al, s tate farm he just celebrated 30 years with State Farm, 22 years of those as an agent with a focus on finance and insurance and eight years in State Farm Leadership. So, one of Pam Herndon’s biggest pet peeves is when people ask if retirement is in her future. Pam’s response is, “I’m not retiring as long as I can do what I love and love what I do.” One aspect of the job she does love is mentoring, developing people who either want to be career insurance professionals or who want to open their own agency. When it comes to helping her clients, she channels her preState Farm career as a teacher. “I never view myself as a salesperson but rather as an educator.” A Durham native, Pam attended Meredith College for her bachelor’s degree and East Carolina University for her master’s in educational administration. However, she left the area when her husband, Wayne Herndon, enlisted in the Air Force in 1977. For decades, the couple lived all over the country, including Nevada, Pennsylvania and North Carolina towns like Cape Carteret. They returned in 2004 when Pam was asked to open her own agency in Chapel Hill. She says she was thrilled – in part because she’s a die-hard Carolina fan. “We couldn’t have asked for a better place to grow my business,” Pam says. When she isn’t at work, Pam spends her time with her family as she also wears the hats of wife, mother and grandmother. She is happily married to her best friend and high school sweetheart, and they will celebrate 48 years of marriage this year. In her free time, Pam likes to stay involved in the community. She joined the East Chapel Hill Rotary Club in 2004, going on mission trips with the club as well as getting involved with the annual teacher supply store, which gives teachers the items they need for their classrooms so they don’t have to pay for some things out of pocket. She explains that she “loves volunteering with that project given [her] background in teaching and educational administration prior to State Farm.” She also volunteers with the SECU Family House, cooking meals once a month. Though she still isn’t done learning, Pam shares a lesson she tries to live by: “If you’re not making mistakes, you’re not doing anything.” – by Aashna Shah
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chapelhillmagazine.com
May/June 2021
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