Morris & Garritano Insurance History: WW2-1960
More than half a century after the war, Cal Poly hosted “Silent Heroes: A tribute to the courageous individuals who protected the properties of the Japanese/Americans who were interred during WWII, the Nisei Veterans, and Masaji Eto.” Among those “who had gone to extra lengths to help their friends and neighbors during that time” were the Pete Bachino Family and the Ernest Vollmer, Sr. Family. Along with Les Stockird, they tended local families’ properties during their internment.
After WWII, came happier times. In 1948, Harry Morris and his wife Anne and their young sons Greg and Michael moved from San Francisco. Their family became a lasting part of the Central Coast. Michael and his son Kevin now practice law at Andre, Morris, and Buttery, a respected firm whose office neighbors Morris & Garritano’s on Laurel Lane. Greg’s oldest son, Brendan, an agency principal and Sales Manager, sells Property and Casualty insurance. Greg’s older daughter, Kelly, taught English at Mission College Preparatory with her husband, David Morgan, before he became an Employee Benefits broker. And Greg’s younger daughter, Kerry, runs the agency’s day-to-day operations, while her husband Jon Pollock sells Life and Disability insurance. Their younger brother Patrick, a musician and artist in Oregon, is the only sibling to escape the world of insurance.
Harry Morris, best known for his courtesy and integrity, earned ownership in the agency when Les Stockird retired in the early Fifties. And in the late Fifties, Pete Bachino’s son, Robert, joined the business after serving as an officer in the Navy and studying at Santa Clara University.
The Sixties, however, would not start as happily as the Fifties ended.
