Our family’s story

My grandfather, Ray Guidry, had been a branch manager for the Toronto Dominion Bank for several years before he was assigned to oversee the branch in Allan, Saskatchewan. In 1976 he was told that they would be relocating him to another branch in the province, however he had grown tired of uprooting his young family time and time again. By July of that same year he left his position at the bank and purchased the local insurance brokerage from John L. Klotz so they could stay in the community that had become their home. On June 14th, 1976 Allan Agencies would officially open it’s doors at 222 2nd Avenue, represented by the Wawanesa Mutual Insurance Company.

In October of that year my grandmother, Deanna Guidry, along with Brian & Lorraine Bakke opened Allan Gift & Novelty in the same building. A few years later my Grandma had purchased Brian & Lorraine’s shares and became the sole owner of our little gift shop.

In 1977 Grandpa had acquired a contract with SGI and we officially became the local SGI Motor License Issuer as well as broker for their insurance products. That same year he began offering bookkeeping and income tax preparation services. During the following years, my mother, Michele Guidry, worked part-time while she she was finishing up her final years of high school.  

Time for expansion! In 1981 Grandpa purchased our current office building located at 208 Main Street for more space to better serve our customers. The following year my Mom graduated from Allan Composite School and attended the University of Regina for two years before returning back to Allan and continued to work part-time for Allan Agencies. 

In 1983 Grandma had decided to take over the Sears Catalogue order office offering an outlet for the town’s mail-order shopping until 2007 (with a temporary closure of this service between 1992 to 1999). 

In 1986 my Mom began working full-time at Allan Agencies and became a licensed Property & Casualty insurance broker by 1989, capable of serving the insurance needs of our community. The timing couldn’t have been better as Grandpa had been thinking about retirement and offered to sell our brokerage to my mom. That same year she met and became engaged to my dad, Howard Zaporozen.

The following year, 1990, my parents tied the knot and my grandparents sold the brokerage and Allan Gift & Novelty to Mom. The newly wed Mrs. Michele Zaporozen had us officially incorporated as Allan Agencies (1976) Ltd. For years to come Grandpa still continued his bookkeeping and income tax preparation business until mom took over that responsibility. She wouldn’t be alone for long with all that responsibility, as my Dad became an equal owner of the business by 2001. 

In 1995 my Mom had purchased the Saskatchewan Mutual Insurance Company (SMI) book of business from Stan Olszewski and we now officially represented three major insurance companies. In 2003 our contract had ended with SMI, but Mom never let that slow her down and continued to provide the best service she could to our community.

I, Sam Zaporozen, was born in October of 1996 and became the ‘Welcome Girl’ of our office, offering unsolicited drawings and conversation to all of our customers. I graduated from Allan Composite School in 2014 and attended the University of Saskatchewan for 3 years before ultimately leaving to work as a motor license issuer in Saskatoon (Thanks Mom for making me get certified in 2015!).

2017 was another year of change for our office: Allan Gift & Novelty officially closed after 40 years, Mom and Dad had adopted their ‘Welcome Boy’, Fergus (the original office Director of Greetings, or D.O.G.), and I officially returned home to work for Allan Agencies full-time. Mom and Dad had offered to sell the brokerage to me once I became fully licensed and I was thrilled that I had the opportunity to carry on our family’s business. 

In 2018 I met and became engaged to my husband, Colin Schamerhorn, and we adopted the second office D.O.G., Blue. 

After years of studying and perseverance I finally received the Canadian Accredited Insurance Broker (CAIB) designation and became a fully licensed Property & Casualty insurance broker in 2021. The following year Colin and I married and I became Mrs. Sam Schamerhorn. 

January 1st, 2024 is the date that I became the owner & operator of Allan Agencies (1976) Ltd., continuing on my family’s legacy in our small community of Allan. In the same year Colin began working full-time for our brokerage, and we adopted our current Junior D.O.G., Stormy.

In 2025 our contract ended with the Wawanesa Mutual Insurance Company, however we are happy to announce a new partnership and contract with Portage Mutual as of October, 2025.

My hope is that our office will continue to serve our customers and community with the respect, kindness, and knowledge that current and past customers have always come to expect from Allan Agencies. Whether you have been a customer since Grandpa first sold you a policy, or this is the first time you’ve heard about us, I hope that we can serve you better and protect what matters most to you!

In memory of Grandpa, Raymond ‘Ray’ Guidry.

March 10, 1936 – June 12, 2001. Gone but never forgotten.  

Ray 10 Year SGI Award
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Howard & Sam
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