Look at the picture above of that adorable crew. They came to visit me in Mazatlan, and I’ll tell you another secret:

We all met at our very first DESTINATION CE classes in 2019.

Hold on, that’s not exactly true either so let me roll this back.

In 2017, I left Bryan Ventures for a bit to try my hand at working for a non-profit. During that time, I thought, “I can’t just leave all of these agents that I have come to love and never teach an in-person class again.” This is when I started toying with the idea of DESTINATION CE. I would take my vacation from this other job and we would all meet in the tropics somewhere to do some insurance continuing education classes.

Into the story come Brent and Kim, the couple to the left in the photo.

They’ve attended Bryan Ventures Insurance CE for years. It’s been so long, none of us remember when it started, but Brent and Kim were instrumental in getting DESTINATION CE started. You see, I thought this getaway idea was pretty good, but I was unsure if it would work, so I wasn’t putting much time into it. But Brent, he thought it was a FABULOUS idea and every time he saw me, he told me he’d sign up that day if I set it up.

So, I set it up, and not only did Brent and Kim register, but so did a whole host of other insurance agents throughout Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin.

Into the story comes, Brian and Jodee, the couple to the right. Brian had never attended Bryan Ventures insurance continuing education before but he joined some people from his office for our DESTINATION CE classes. Brian, Jodee, Brent, and Kim all came back for the DESTINATION CE classes in 2020.

Then COVID-19 hit, but that didn’t stop this foursome. While Bryan Ventures took a break from DESTINATION CE classes, they kept traveling back to Mazatlan every year (except in 2021 when Americans couldn’t cross the border–but that year they vacationed together in Florida)! That’s five years of traveling friendship and still going strong.

There are other stories to tell as well like one of the DESTINATION CE attendees now spends all of her winter’s here in Mazatlan. She’s the one who helped me move here, but I’ll save that cool story for another blog as well as various other interesting DESTINATION CE connections.

In the meantime, please help me with the following:

1. Email me if you are interested in DESTINATION CE classes. You’ll be the first to receive updates and you’ll also be the group I ask opinions of in the planning stages.

2. If you are on Facebook, and you’ve attended our classes, send me a FACEBOOK FRIEND REQUEST. I love seeing the things in your life, and I love continuing to encourage each other outside of our professional lives, so please send the request today: RENEE’S FACEBOOK ACCOUNT.

Final consideration, the LIVE WEBINARS are going great. We’ve had so many great discussions–I have two blogs in the works from the wonderful agent’s comments about the content and discussions in the LIVE WEBINARS. The accolades are overwhelming. If I hear a negative comment, it usually is this, “The LIVE WEBINARS are like the discussions of the in-person classes, but we really can’t get to know each other as if we aren’t in the same room together.”

That is so very true–and this is why I encourage you to try the DESTINATION CE. Those of us who have attended got lifelong friends and years of fun out of it.

This blog highlights our DESTINATION CE classes in February 2025. Published  March 2024. Renee E. Bryan also publishes writing on her blog: WrongWayLizzie.Me.