PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 8, 2024

Contact:Christina Hager or Sue Spiry

(413) 787-1133

Chager@MarketMentors.com

The Dowd Agencies acquires Lonergan & Thomas Inc. in Bennington, Vermont 

Acquisition expands Vermont insurance agency’s services, Dowd’s regional footprint 

HOLYOKE, Mass. – The Dowd Insurance Agencies, LLC, a leading insurance provider serving New England since 1898, has announced its acquisition of third-generation insurance agency Lonergan & Thomas Inc. in Bennington, Vermont, effective August 1.

The Dowd Agencies has operated under continuous family ownership for more than 125 years and five generations. Serving clients across Vermont and New York, Lonergan & Thomas has been family owned and operated for more than 65 years. The similarities between the agencies’ foundations and corporate trajectories made the development a natural one, said Dowd President and CEO John E. Dowd Jr.

“This is one longstanding, family-owned, independent agency in a quaint corner of New England joining forces with another, and the benefits to our respective clients will be many,” he said. “Gary and his staff have an outstanding reputation in Bennington County, and we are thrilled to partner with them to grow the agency throughout southern Vermont and beyond”. “We are also excited to start this new chapter in our story with a northward expansion and rewarding new partnership.”

Lonergan & Thomas will retain all the agency’s employees and, for at least the next two years, its name. The acquisition will allow Lonergan & Thomas to grow its services beyond the personal and business lines it currently offers and to work with a larger variety of insurance carriers. 

“We’ll be able to offer a full range of quality health, life and wealth management products, resulting in better options and potential cost savings for the customer,” said Gary Thomas, president of Lonergan & Thomas. “We also want our customers to know that other than our logo and expanded services, nothing will change. We’ll have the same staff and same high-quality service as always.”

The Dowd Agencies has seven locations employing 75 people across the region. In addition to personal and commercial insurance, they launched Dowd Financial Services in 2009 to provide employee benefits including group and individual health, life and disability. In 2020, they started Dowd Wealth Management to offer equity-based product options such as retirement plans and investments along with individual financial planning.

About The Dowd Agencies

A full-service agency, The Dowd Agencies, including Dowd Financial Services and Dowd Wealth Management, has been helping people and businesses in western Massachusetts with their personal insurance, commercial insurance, employee benefits and financial needs for over 125 years. Established in Holyoke in 1898 by James J. Dowd, The Dowd Agencies is the oldest insurance agency in Massachusetts with operations and management under continuous family ownership. Today the fifth generation of Dowd provides counsel and coverage from several locations across western Massachusetts. For more information, please visit dowd.com.

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