Richard Allen Berkfield Jr. & Karen Swift Berkfield

Richard and Karen Berkfield both value education as a way to change a person’s life for the better. Education is a means to enhance literacy, raise personal expectations and create prosperity.

Richard was one of six children and was born in Northwest Detroit. Although all basic needs were met in the family budget, private schools were out of the question. Through discipline, hard work and commitment, Richard worked to put himself through U of D High School and well as U of D / Mercy College. It left little time for a personal life, but he looked at the larger picture and knew that the results of his efforts would benefit him for the rest of his life.

Those efforts prepared him for what would be a lifetime in the insurance industry. In 1979, Richard founded Berkfield & Co Ltd, an independent insurance agency that is approaching 40 years in business. The insurance business has treated him very well, just as he treats his clients. He loves what he does and it shows. He believes he is helping his clients to prosper by protecting everything they have worked hard for in their lives.

Karen took a very different path with her education. She was one of five children (all girls) whose father worked at Ford Motor Co. All five of the girls attended parochial schools for grades 1-12. Even with the privilege of these schools, Karen decided to forego additional education and married not long after graduating from high school. She raised her family, co-owned a number of successful businesses and feels she earned her post-high school education at the School of Hard Knocks.

Fast forward to her children being grown and her looking to find a job, when she realized her education had stopped too early. The last time she had worked in an office, computers were optional (if you can imagine that). It was time to update her knowledge for current requirements.

OCC came to the rescue! She started with very basic computer classes and became fascinated with what could be accomplished with their help. Accounting classes were quickly added to her schedule. The combination of these classes provided her the skills to get a great job that she loved.

After marrying Richard, Karen realized she is a life-long learner and became licensed in Property & Casualty Insurance as well as Life Insurance. She now works side by side with her husband in the insurance office.

Whether it’s done early in life or later in life, education is an essential part of becoming the best you can be.