portion of that revenue back to our partner company.” And generate revenue these subdivisions did. Today, WGAT and PCMI are responsible for managing over $500 million in health care claims with over 60,000 covered employees. Additionally, the organization’s retail network of pharmacies totals more than 65,000 nationwide and fills more than one million prescriptions each year through its mail order program. For scale, compare that to our humble beginnings when the Trust was first established in 1957—in our first month of operation, WGAT’s sole plan covered 144 lives. “David is member-driven to the core and has dedicated his career to helping build the Western Growers Family of Companies. His relentless entrepreneurship has met many member and marketplace needs while creating the firm financial footing that has allowed our association to prosper. There is no adequate way to sum up his 38 years of service except to say that his impact on our organization and industry will be realized for decades to come,” said Western Growers President and CEO Dave Puglia. Continued Contributions At the 96 th Western Growers Annual Meeting in November, David was honored with the Service Award in recognition of his dedication and tenure with the company. David addressed the crowd, expressing his appreciation for being provided with an opportunity to work for an organization that has a solid mission. “It’s hard to put into words why I’ve been here so long—it’s an emotional feeling. I’ve stayed with this organization because of the members we serve, our mission and our supportive staff. If you cut my arm, I bleed green,” he said. Although David is exiting Western Growers as a full-time employee in February, it’s not completely goodbye. David will continue to lend his support and expertise to the family of companies as a consultant in the areas of strategic planning, new business and retention strategies, product development, and budgetary assistance and cost analysis. When I asked him about his decision to stay on as a consultant, David spoke of the importance of integrity and loyalty. “I like doing things the right way, and I’ll always put our company’s mission first over anything else. I want
David and his glider
enhance David’s vision of Pinnacle becoming a one-stop solution for employers’ health care needs. David was also instrumental in the implementation of our Cedar Health & Wellness Centers and associated Cedar Network, enabling our organization to provide affordable health care services with copays that cost less than standard plans, while further delivering exceptional care and keeping costs under control. For David, our Cedar Health and Wellness Centers were an opportunity to expand access to high-quality, cost-effective
patient care throughout the communities we serve. “During my tenure with the organization, one of the things I’m most proud of is creating Pinnacle and turning it into a profitable enterprise with multiple successful subdivisions, as well as Western Growers Assurance Trust being financially healthy with a significant surplus,” Zanze said. “I was fortunate enough to have been given the opportunity to create a new business line and new sources of revenue for the organization and bring a significant
David (far left) played bass in the band, "Just Grown Up" at the company picnic 26 Western Grower & Shipper | www.wga.com JANUARY | FEBRUARY 2023
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