Hidden Gems: Meet Bill Bathe of Allied Insurance Solutions, LLC

Today we’d like to introduce you to Bill Bathe.

Bill, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I started my journey in life as a professional baseball player. Having signed a professional contract out of Pepperdine University in Malibu, California. Like most young kids, I had a dream to play in the big leagues and was fortunate to live that dream. I was also fortunate enough to have played in the 1989 world series as a member of the San Francisco Giants. In game 3 I hit a 3 run home run in the seventh inning and cemented myself in the history books. This was also the World Series earthquake, the Loma Prieta earthquake that shook San Francisco to the core.

I continued baseball after the Giants and signed a contract in Japan on a 3 year contract. During that time my wife and I grew apart and we divorced right after returning. Since I had a son to raise, I decided to leave baseball and pursue something in public safety. I watched my dad as I grew up work for the L.A. County sheriff’s department. This always had intrigued me. I was attracted to community service and decided to pursue being a fire fighter in Tucson, Az.

Being a fire fighter was similar to baseball in that you had a team atmosphere. In baseball, the stage was entertainment. In fire fighting, the stage was life and death. Both exciting and relying on your teammates. With firefighting, I could stay in Tucson and not have to get on a plane. I had a 26 year career and got as high as a battalion chief and during those 26 I was also a paramedic for 24 of those years.

Before retiring, i knew that i wanted to continue to serve and help the community but not as a fire fighter anymore. I had friends who were brokers for Medicare and the more I looked into it, the more I liked it. Right before retiring from TFD, I got licensed, contracted and appointed as an Insurance agent and I was off and running.

My business continued to grow from 2020 and I formed my current company “Allied Insurance Solutions LLC”. I became an “S” corporation and operate as an agency now and have hundreds of clients and operate in 8 states. Mainly in the southwest region.

As an owner and broker, I represent most of all of the carriers in Arizona and plan types which gives clients the ability to find the plan that best fits them. In addition, I became a national recognized social security analyst and currently help people plan for their social security benefits and also their Medicare with Medicare being my primary mission of my company.

It is an honor and privilege to be able to continue to assist people in navigating Medicare and continue to help our community. I am remarried and have 6 kids and 6 grandkids and love being here in Arizona!

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It has not always been a smooth road. And most things in life require perseverance and the ability to get around obstacles. I believe the people in life who are successful find ways to reach their goals. And this involves knowing how to navigate the bumps in the road.

I often look back at several things in my life that served as a foundation to my successes. First of all, I was fortunate to have parents who always told me that I could do anything if I was willing to work hard and not give up. I was also fortunate enough to have the ability to play baseball and through my experiences with baseball, I learned to never give up and always work to be the best.

One example in particular that serves me well happened in 1986, the year i made the big leagues with the Oakland A’s. Every year since I signed from 1981 to 1986, I was always invited to big league camp in spring training with the ability to make the team. Well, in the winter of 1985/1986 I was given a notice by the Oakland A’s that i would be reporting to minor league camp. This was devastating for me as it meant I had no chance to make the big league club or have any opportunity. It was a dagger in my heart.

So during that winter when I would work menial jobs to put food on the table, I devoted myself to getting better physically. That winter I worked as a grout foreman (hard work), in Casa Grande, Az. We were building a printing plant and I would work 16 hour days, 6 days a week. Instead of hanging my head and being depressed about my situation with baseball, I used this time to get better. I would run with the grout hose and climb scaffolding with this charged hose line and push myself over and over to be stronger and quicker. By the end of the winter, no one could keep up with me. I was on a mission.

As fate would have it, the farm director for the Oakland A’s called me after big league camp had already been going on and said to me, “Bill, are you willing to come down to spring training early, I want to take a look at you a little more in detail”. Of course I told him yes. Even though big league camp was already in full swing, I came down to Scottsdale to work out with the farm director before reporting to minor league camp.

I met up with our farm director and we worked out for 3 days one-on-one. Throwing, hitting, talking baseball. On the third day he told me that he was very impressed and that he is recommending that i report to big league camp right away! So that afternoon i reported to big league camp again. I was a catcher and I knew most of the team. But when i reported, all I was doing was warming up starting pitchers in the bull pen and not getting into any cactus league games. But as fate would have it, 3 catchers ahead of me all got hurt at the same time and the only 2 catchers remaining were me and Charlie O’brien.

They traded Charlie O’brien to the Milwaukee Brewers and with only one week left in spring training, I was the lone catcher remaining. I ended up having the best spring training of my life, having done remarkable in the cactus league games. With only 3 days left of spring training I was told I had made the big league team!!!

To say this was an amazing experience is to not do it justice. I had conquered the hill and stood at the top of baseball. I will never forget opening day in Oakland with Dusty Baker by side telling me “God bless you” as we began to play our first game of the 1986 season. Little did I know that this would be a shining moment in my life that would serve me throughout my life. Never give up, always work hard and seek out solutions and implement a game plan. No pun intended!

We’ve been impressed with Allied Insurance Solutions, LLC, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Allied Insurance Solutions LLC was formed to provide exceptional service to people who are trying to navigate Medicare. We specialize in guiding you to the right plan that fits your unique situation the best by giving you the knowledge to make an informed and educated decision.
We are known for being compassionate, taking the time to make sure you understand Medicare and this sets us apart from others. We live in a society where other agents or agencies are just trying to get a commission. We don’t operate that way and stay in contact with you each and every year. We will reach out to you each year to make sure your plan is still serving you well. It is this family approach that brings a lot of referrals and sets us apart from others.
We are most proud of building a relationship with the client. We don’t look at the process as selling you something. We look at the process as you becoming part of our family by providing the necessary information you need to make a good decision. And we do this through an easy process that involves getting to know you and understanding what makes you sleep at night. We not only guide you we serve as your advocate as well. And the best part is it doesn’t cost you anything. We get paid by the carriers. We are like having a free coach by your side.
By being appointed and contracted by most carriers in Arizona, we are able to offer you a plan that fits you best. Whether it is a supplement plan, an advantage plan or prescription drug plan. We also help you with hospital indemnity, cancer insurance and more…But more than anything, we separate ourselves from others through our compassionate and caring service. We are there for you each step of the way.

Can you share something surprising about yourself?
People are really surprised to learn that I played major league baseball. They mainly see me as a hard working and caring guy who serves our community. And when they find out that I played in the earthquake world series, they are really surprised.

And then when they type my name in Google and see all my baseball card pictures, they are stunned. LOL! They don’t realize that I still get fan mail to this day and continue to autograph cards.

One of the most funny situations happened to me when I was a paramedic on Tucson Fire. I responded to a call for difficulty breathing. When we walked in we realized this guy was a baseball card collector. I asked the guy if he had a Bill Bathe card and he proceeded to say yes and then reeled off my entire history. He knew me better then I did. I didn’t tell him who I was until we were in the back of the medic truck enroute to the hospital. He didn’t believe me at first and I had to pull out my drivers license to show him I was not fibbing. LOL! Needless to say, he suddenly felt better!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.alliedinsurancesolutionsllc.com
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AlliedInsuranceSolutionsllc