Doug Henry: a builder in and out of the ring
We wish to congratulate the founder of Henry Equestrian Insurance Brokers, Doug Henry, on his induction into the Jump Canada Hall of Fame on November 2, 2013. As Doug was unable to attend, his family members Jim Henry, Kaitlin Henry Armstrong and Nancy Armstrong accepted the honour on his behalf in a special ceremony, presented by BMO Financial Group, at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto.
Doug was inducted in the category of Builder (Individual) in recognition for his outstanding contributions of the Canadian hunter/jumper industry. He is the 20th human inductee into the Jump Canada Hall of Fame and the 45th inductee since its inception in 2006. (There have been 17 horses and ponies, five organizations and three teams already inducted.) Doug was once one of the top riders in Canada – he was a member of the Canadian Equestrian team.
It all started at the Royal Winter Fair
Doug’s mother took him to the Royal Winter Fair when he was nine years old, and from then on, he loved horses. His mother signed him up for lessons with the Canadian Pony Club. His brother Jim also loved horses and the two boys would compete and watch film of the competition for hours afterwards to critique each other’s riding.
Fellow riders say that Doug always looked for a challenge picking the toughest horses and working to develop them. His preparation and attention to detail helped Doug to develop a very unique style of riding. He competed in Detroit, Chicago, Halifax, Toronto and Calgary where he completed the first clear round at the Chrysler Classic. Even with a full-time job during the day, he still rode every evening.
Meeting the needs of the equestrian community
Being a rider and horse owner, Doug knew from experience that riders and their horses had needs that weren’t being met in terms of insurance. He gathered a group of specialists that understood the unique insurance needs of horse ownership and farm property. His family had owned an insurance brokerage so Doug understood insurance, but more importantly he lived the same life as the customers he wanted to help.
He created the Henry Equestrian Plan – an innovative new insurance product to meet the varied and complex needs of horse and farm owners. He worked with insurance companies with the best reputations and offerings because he truly understood equestrian requirements. Doug built the brokerage’s reputation on his expertise in Farm, Equestrian Liability and Henry Equestrian Plans for horses and equestrians for mortality, liability and medical and surgical insurance coverage.
After starting Henry Equestrian Insurance Brokers, Doug continued support of the sport as a sponsor of some of Canada’s largest show jumping tournaments including the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair with equal billing at all levels of competition from grand prix to lower level competition.
Continued support
We’re extremely proud of Doug and his work as a backer, sponsor and supporter of the equine community. He’s always worked to provide for those in need and promote the next generation of riders. We continue that support after 35 years through the range of insurance products we offer horse owners and farm property owners.
We’re still taking care of the horse community. Many of our staff are also horse owners and riders – that means they know about and understand horse ownership. We continue to work hand-in-hand with the insurance companies to offer a variety of first-class specialty insurance products designed by equestrians for the equestrian marketplace.
We fully support the vision that Doug created and continue in his honour to build something he can be proud of and support equestrian events including the Centaur Shows.