As a family-owned & employee-owned company, our advisors are committed to meeting your unique needs, not those of outside shareholders.
Meet the Team
We’re here to help you on your adventure.
Founded in 1884 by John J. Appel and Fred Gregory, Gregory & Appel started with a dream to build a lasting insurance agency. Over a century later, that dream continues to live on. We’ve been independently owned through it all, allowing us to be more nimble and supportive of our clients and colleagues.
Our new office shines a light on emerging and established artists across Indianapolis through their stories of personal history, cultural traditions and more.
Looking to become a part of our team of insurance brokers and risk managers?
Open Positions
Andrew Appel is a leader who relies not on name recognition to power him forward but instead on the steadfast pursuit of empowering G&A’s clients, colleagues and community. Andrew’s tenure as CEO & chairman has already seen him take on challenges from developing a diverse and inclusive staff to rocking as lead singer in their culture music video.
Today, anyone who knows Andrew recognizes him as a forever student of the written word, woodworking, empathy and Cubs baseball. Andrew aims to be a driving force for change in the insurance industry—with his passion, his servant leadership and his affinity for loud socks.
David Fischer is a visionary who is passionate about all things revenue and always brings an auspicious energy to the room. After serving eight years as an officer in the U.S. Marine Corps, David spent twelve years in the high-tech public sector with an emphasis on international sales providing manufacturing software solutions to the Fortune 100. He joined our executive leadership team in 2019.
David has been married to his wife, Shawn, for over 30 years, and together they have five children and three grandchildren. In his free time, he loves to enjoy the great outdoors by mountain biking, downhill skiing and technical mountain climbing.
Mike Salazar is an unapologetically passionate employee safety enthusiast who exudes a can-do attitude. Mike brings a friendly face to keeping organizations OSHA-compliant, and he consistently goes the extra mile to put the needs of clients first. He joined Gregory & Appel in the mid-90s and has embodied G&A’s culture of service ever since. As COO, he oversees our operations team, ensuring our clients benefit from outstanding service and processes that support their continued growth.
Outside of work, Mike has been active for many years with Indiana Youth Soccer and the Race to Recovery to benefit people who suffer paralysis as a result of spinal cord injuries.
Amber Breeden is a master of numbers and analysis who uses her keen eye for detail and empathic leadership style to lead all day-to-day functions of the accounting team.
In her role as accounting manager, she is eager to work with her colleagues to implement new ideas that improve on existing systems and processes. She loves how G&A encourages continued learning: “It’s important for our leaders to encourage growth and provide opportunities to learn new things.”
Her family keeps her busy – she loves spending time with her husband and playing with their two young kids. Amber is an avid reader who also loves the great outdoors. Their favorite family hiking spots are McCormick’s Creek State Park and the Yellowwood State Forest.
Joe Cano is a dedicated IT manager with a passion for growth. He believes that you’re never done learning and that you should always make an effort to exceed expectations. Growing up, Joe had no idea that you could make a career out of IT. After taking an elective IT course in college, his entire career path changed, eventually joining the Gregory & Appel team in 2020.
In his free time, Joe enjoys all things cars, space exploration and Formula One racing. When he's not working, Joe can typically be found exploring Indiana's parks with his fiancé and their dog, attending car-related events or at a baseball game.
Erika Cuadrado is a bold marketing leader who’s energized by continuously improving Gregory & Appel’s go-to-market approach and breaking the status quo of insurance industry marketing.
In 2016, she channeled her focus on marketing leadership and joined G&A to help shape the company’s brand direction. Now as executive vice president of marketing, Erika leads and defines G&A’s brand and revenue marketing strategy to drive growth.
Outside of work, Erika enjoys life's small pleasures, whether it's playing board games with her family, strength training or teaching her son the Spanish language.
Tim Hicks has an uncanny ability to connect with others, whether by making you smile or helping you out. His good nature is sincere, and his background makes him uniquely suited to helping a variety of clients handle their risk and insurance challenges. As executive vice president of revenue, he supports our property & casualty risk advisors and benefits consultants, helping guide them to innovative solutions to meet client needs.
A native son of the Hoosier state, Tim grew up on his family's farm in western Indiana. When not making his clients and colleagues laugh with his good humor – and highly-caffeinated energy – he enjoys spending time with his wife and kids, watching sports.
Dustin Koesters is a true seize-the-day extraordinaire. A diagnosis in early adulthood brought Dustin face-to-face with the priority of living life to its fullest. With early hopes of being a stockbroker, Dustin went to the Kelley School of Business at IUPUI. However, a part-time job in insurance during his senior year sparked a love in him for the industry, and he never looked back, joining our family in 2015. Today, he continues to help push our company to new heights.
Dustin loves spending time with his wife, four children and any friend who is up for an adventure. He also enjoys hosting cookouts, traveling and watching movies – but never the same one twice.
Jack Mahoney spent multiple years as a commercial property underwriter for Chubb Insurance, his innate value for family preparing himself to work for the family firm. Business and personal relationships connected him to the Appel family and G&A over 30 years ago, and a partnership was born that was instrumental in bringing G&A to the place it is today. Regardless of the type of business, Jack’s passion is providing top-notch service for his clients.
Jack’s love of running has seen him hit the pavement both for fun and in completing multiple Chicago marathons. He also enjoys playing golf, practicing racket sports, hiking, reading and traveling with his family.
Mary Ann Schmid is a commercial senior risk advisor who can tackle everything from the detective work of finding strategic solutions for her clients to fixing the office copier. Since Gregory & Appel extended her the opportunity to become an account manager over 30 years ago, she has grown her book of business to multiple years of Legendary Producer status, and she still has some accounts today that she did when she first began.
Hard work has always been a part of Mary Ann’s make up. When she does take time to relax, she enjoys reading historical fiction, walking outside, and gardening – celebrating that sometimes you just need to get your hands in the dirt.