12/04/2024
Sharing this post again on this special day at BMG - cannot believe it has been one whole year. We miss our Big Cheese daily and hope we are making him proud! ❤️
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It is with the greatest of sorrow that the BMG family announces the passing of our kind, brave, brilliant and incomparably generous owner, Robert Sanford.
Robert founded BMG in 1999 with just three part-time employees and often joked that we should name the agency “Three Chicks and an S.O.B.”. Luckily that name didn’t stick, as we have grown throughout the years and now boast a staff of 15 bright and talented people (of both genders) that over the last 24 years have learned about so much more than insurance from Robert. He had a passion for employee benefits and sought to educate everyone he came across. He always thought outside the box and garnered the the trust of his clients, and their businesses were better for it. He developed such a high level of respect from the broker community throughout the state that he was often called on for advice from his “so-called” competition. He called them all friends. There is no one with whom Robert would not share his time and knowledge.
His genius and business instincts are surpassed only by his generosity. I would be hard pressed to find anyone that knew Robert well that could say that they were not beneficiaries of his kindnesses. Whether it was advice, tickets to a game, meals, gift certificates, trips, sharing his famous Marriott points, even “over-tipping” service people, Robert was a giver – through and through. During the lean and uncertain year of Covid Robert sought out local businesses that were suffering and found ways to help support them. When Briarwood Country Club was faltering, he personally mobilized financial support from others in the community to prop it up and get it back on its feet so Meridian would not lose this treasure. Examples of his kindnesses and ingenuity could fill a book.
Another quality that we have learned from Robert is humility. As one of the top-ranking amateur golfers in the state, he won countless awards and trophies, including being named MS Golf Association Senior Player of the Year in 2018 and Super Senior Player of the Year in 2021. Despite his intimidating golf skills, he never bragged on himself or made a novice golfer playing with him feel inferior. He would have won back-to-back Super Senior Player of the Year awards in 2022 had he simply finished the round, but his shoulder injury forced him to scratch. When we remarked at how disappointing that must have been for him, he replied that the person who had been in second place really deserved it. Humble to the core, he will remain quite the legend.
As for his business that he loved, Benefits Management Group, Inc, Robert had made arrangements years ago regarding the succession plans. The company will go on, despite this huge loss of his intelligence, foresight and direction with a primary goal of making him proud and honoring his legacy. Our BMG family is heartbroken, but will stay strong together and continue to offer the service, support and strategic planning at the level our clients have become accustomed to. Please join us in praying for his family - his wife Linda and children William and Margaret Ann as they begin to navigate this difficult new journey.
Robert lived for those he loved, and those he loved will always remember.
“Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can.” - John Wesley
