David E. Hagberg is a man on a mission - literally. After building a successful career in the insurance industry, he is now "a missionary and a healer with God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit," he says. A native of Worcester, Massachusetts, Dave attended UVM on the GI Bill after a stint in the Marine Corps, majoring in economics. "It was my dream to be the only member in my family to graduate from a university and start a career rather than just getting a job," he says. "I wanted to make a lot of money and be of service to mankind. As time went on, that is exactly what has happened, slowly but surely, as God would have it." He got his first job with Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company with the help of the university's career services office and began to rise swiftly up the ranks. He became Rookie of the Year and National Man of the Year in just three years, and was sent to run the company's Detroit office for a number of years. He eventually was transferred to Los Angeles, where he managed an entire region but kept his hand in the sales end of the business, as well, earning more than 40 awards for excellence in sales and service. He retired at age 52 to set up his own business selling individual insurance and group plans, a business that remains active today. But as often happens in life, career success was only part of what makes a person happy. Overcoming a decades-long struggle with alcohol, he says, led him to God and a nationwide recovery program. As a born-again Christian, he now dedicates himself to being of service to others around the world.
