Richard J. Byron - A Man Who Made a Difference

Richard J.
Byron





Remembering
Dick...

"I can say without hesitation that everytime Dick asked a question regarding audit issues, commissioner of insurance issues, and due dilligence inquiry issues, I personally learned from him, noting the importance of his focus. He educated me as a member of this board and enabled all of us to function that much stronger as a group." - John Danner


"Dick was a one-of-a-kind, very special guy. He was down-to-earth friendly, soft spoken and very very wise. Whenever he spoke, we board members listened...intently!" - John Bubolz

Richard J. Byron, who served with great distinction on the WILMIC Board of Directors since 1988, died this past May 24 at the age of 71.

During the malpractice insurance crisis in the mid-1980's, when lawyers couldn't find affordable insurance coverage, a group of State Bar leaders, including Madison attorney Don Heaney and Milwaukee attorney Bill Mulligan, agreed to start their own malpractice insurance company.

It was a daunting task, but one the pulled off. WILMIC was born in 1986, and by 1988, Don Heaney knew they needed some expertise. "We didn't have anybody who knew anything about insurance. We were just a bunch of lawyers. We knew how to form a company, we just didn't know what we were going to do with it."

Along came Richard Byron, who had worked in private practice, than at Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company and Wausau Insurance Companies. "When Dick came with John Bubolz and Anne Ross, we finally had some expertise for the first time," Heaney recalls. "Dick was helpful because he talked to us in a way we could understand. We desperately needed expertise, and with the, we got it."

During WILMIC's 20-year anniversary celebration in 2006, Mr. Byron was asked why he had stayed on the board for so long. "I really enjoy the good personal relationships among the board and staff. And I'm proud of the success we have collectively achieved over the course of these two decades."

WILMIC President & CEO Katja Kunzke remembers Richard Byron with great fondness. "He was unfailingly supportive and kind to me. His deep commitment to WILMIC, his passion for knowledge, his quick wit, his ease with laughter and friendship while still getting the business at hand done-all of these qualities in Dick are ones I deeply admire and hope to emulate. Dick was my cheerleader, my mentor and my friend. I will miss him."

Don Heaney also remembers Mr. Byron with affection. "Everyone warmed to him, even if you didn't know him well, you got to love him-he was fun to be around. My wife, Barbara, knew him longer than I did. He got to know her when he served on a committee charged with redrafting the state's insurance code. When he met me, he went out of his way to tell me how good the work was that Barbara did for that committee. That was how he was. He made you feel good being around him."

Mr. Byron met his wife Carol in 1957 and they were married in 1961. Richard began practicing law in 1964 after graduating from UW Law School.

He is survived by three sons, two grandchildren, a brother and sister, three sisters-in-law and a brother-in-law. He was preceded in death by his wife Carol in 2004.