Meet Our Team

Byron Allen President / CEO

Education

Byron graduated magna cum laude from Arizona State University’s Honors College with dual Bachelor degrees in Accountancy and Computer Information Science and later returned to ASU to earn his MBA.

Byron has worked at American Savings Life Insurance Company since 1993. His prior responsibilities have included being a loan servicing clerk, a staff accountant, a loan officer, Financial Officer and Vice-President. Byron has been President/CEO since 2006.

Family & Hobbies

Byron and his wife Janice have eight children which keep them very busy to say the least. When not busy attending concerts, games, recitals, etc., Byron also enjoys golfing, volleyball, camping, hiking and any opportunity he can find to speak German.

Professional Associations

Life Insurers Council –current Board member
National Alliances of Life Companies – member and membership chair
National Assoc. of Financial Advisors (Scottsdale, AZ) – past Treasurer and board member
Arizona Private Lender Association – past President and board member

Community Involvement

Boy Scouts of America - Scoutmaster and Eagle Scout
Mesa United Way - Executive committee, finance committee and board member
Full-time volunteer missionary for two years for his church in Switzerland, Germany & Austria for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

Favorite Quotes

“Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle.” – Abraham Lincoln
“Heights by great men reached and kept, were not obtained by sudden flight; But they, while their companions slept, were toiling upward in the night.” – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

Michael Frahm Vice President, Product Development

Michael is the Vice President of America Savings Life managing the product development, market research analysis, agent training, marketing and sales for all annuity and life products.

Michael has been in the life insurance industry for approximately 25 years. He has qualified as a Million Dollar Roundtable personal producing agent, was the managing partner of a record-breaking career agency office, and worked in the home offices of life & annuity carriers having been the Director of Sales & Marketing, Chairman of the Product Design & Development Committee, Product Manager, and Senior Advisor.

Michael previously taught part-time as a business professor for the University of Phoenix, Western International University, and Axia College. He also was an instructor for the Phoenix Insurance & Securities School and the Life Underwriters Training Council.

He additionally assisted in the examination development for the Certified Financial Planner (CFP) designation, along with the course content development for LOMA's Fellow Life Management Institute (FLMI) designation.

In addition, he has had articles published as a life insurance subject matter expert in Senior Market Advisor, Life Insurance Selling, and NAIFA's Advisor Today magazines.

His industry designations include Certified Financial Planner (CFP), Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU), Chartered Financial Consultant (ChFC), Life Underwriters Training Council Fellowship (LUTCF), Fraternal Insurance Counselor Fellowship (FICF), Fellow Life Management Institute with distinction (FLMI), Associate Insurance Regulatory Compliance (AIRC), Associate Reinsurance Administration (ARA), Chartered Advisor in Philanthropy (CAP), Chartered Leadership Fellow (CLF), Associate Customer Service (ACS), LOMA's Underwriting Certificate, and the Dale Carnegie Course certification.

Michael has a Bachelors degree in Finance and Business from the California State University in Fullerton and a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Phoenix.

He has been married for over 30 years to his wife Lori, and they have a daughter and a son. He and his wife enjoy hiking in the Arizona mountains and volunteering in their church and community.

Richard B. Unangst Compliance Director, Chief Risk Officer

Richard Unangst attended Brigham Young University and in 1961 he was hired by Frihoff Allen, Founder and President of American Savings Life Insurance Company and served as their Accountant Controller for eleven years. Richard then went out on his own and performed the accounting, filing of Annual Statements with State Regulators, and doing consulting for several small Life Insurance Companies in Arizona. Richard was then hired by the Arizona Department of Insurance as an Insurance Examiner conducting Solvency and Market Conduct examinations; he also was an Insurance Examiner for the State of Delaware. During the 6 ½ years that Richard was an Insurance Examiner he examined among other Insurance Companies, New York Life, Metropolitan Life’s Property and Casualty Company, and Jackson National Life Insurance Company.

In 1997 Richard was invited to join the Arizona Securities Division as a financial Institution examiner because of his extensive financial auditing and insurance background. In 1999 he was appointed Supervisor of all of the Division’s Examiners, supervising the examinations of Broker Dealers and Investment Advisors for state statute and sales practice compliance. He also worked closely with staff members of the U. S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the National Association of Securities Dealers Regulation (NASD), and other state regulators. He was a member of the North American Administrator’s Associations (NASAA) Investment Advisor outreach project group, which worked on developing a national electronic filing and registration depository for investment advisors. Richard served as Chairman of the NASAA Investment Advisor Outreach Committee, where he was specifically recognized for his work in preparing PowerPoint presentations for investment advisors in transitioning to an electronic filing and registration system, and preparing the State Regulators with PowerPoint presentations to accept the transitioning of the Investment Advisor’s to the electronic filing system. His PowerPoint Presentations were posted on NASAA’s National website for 8 years. In May of 2004 Richard retired from State Service, and was awarded a Special Recognition Plaque with his retired Badge affixed, thanking him for his friendship and service to the Arizona Securities Division.

From June of 2004 to November of 2006 Richard worked as a compliance examiner for the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD) at District #8 in Chicago IL. The NASD is a self-regulatory organization (SRO), which regulates all Broker Dealers in the United States and is over sited by the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC). Richard retired from the NASD after two years of service.

In January of 2009 Richard was invited by David Allen Chairman of the Board and Byron Allen President to return to American Savings Life as Compliance Officer to help with the development and electronic filings with Arizona and Utah of Annuity Products for the company. After the successful filings, he was asked to do the underwriting for the Annuity Products and continue to assist with additional Annuity Product development and filings. With 15 years of experience as a regulator he is dedicated to making sure that American Savings is compliant with the Insurance Statues and Rules. In underwriting he is committed to determining that our Insurance Policies and Annuity Contracts are “Suitable” for the applicants focusing on their financial goals and assuring them and their family’s future.

On a personal note: Richard is the Father of 7 Children, Grandfather of 19 Grandchildren, and the Great Grandfather of 37 Great Grandchildren. He loves to dance and is an avid runner, preaching consistence exercise for a better quality of life and health.

Robert Messick Assistant Controller

Robert Messick has over 15 years in his career involving business, accounting and finance. With a degree in Finance and with an MBA, he has held finance positions with various responsibilities including accounting, financial statement analysis, treasury and cash flow management, investment research and analysis.

Robert joined American Savings Life at the end of 2015 and serves as Assistant Controller in Accounting. He is a family man (father of four), loves the outdoors and is a motorcycle enthusiast. Robert has also been a keynote speaker, a published author and looks forward to being of service inside the company.

Linda Williams Administrative Assistant

Linda has been with American Savings Life Insurance since early 2015. She enjoys seeing our beautiful country and had the awesome opportunity for three years to travel throughout the U.S. with a singing group. In her spare time (what is that?) she is happy:

spending time with family
watching chick flicks and old TV shows/movies
buying (especially at estate sales)
selling on the internet

Richard Campbell

I joined American Savings Life in February 2015. I have been a Real Estate Broker in Arizona for over 30 years. I have developed over 2,000,000 sq. ft. of retail space, two Hampton Inns, an Embassy Suite, a 90,000 sq. ft. industrial building, and two small office buildings. I manage the properties owned by the company and advise the company on the disposition of these properties.

I received BS and MA degrees from Arizona State University

I have volunteered over 30 years in Boy Scouts of America and received the rank of Eagle Scout as a youth. I enjoy reading and learning new ideas.

E. Paul Whetten Managing Executive of American Life Financial Corp

Work Experience/Education:Paul has 10 years of experience in enterprise management and small business accounting and over 14 years of experience in the financial services industry. He graduated magna cum laude from Arizona State University with a degree in History and went on to receive a Masters of Administration degree, with distinction, from Northern Arizona University. In addition to his responsibilities with American Life Financial Paul is an adjunct professor of business at Mesa Community College.

Family/Hobbies: Paul’s greatest claim to fame is that he convinced his wife Sally to marry him. They are the proud parents of 6 children that have kept them constantly on the move for the past 20+ years.

Paul has a large collection of historic flags that he uses in public speaking engagements and events all over Arizona. He enjoys public speaking, reading, singing, camping, and cooking in Dutch ovens.

Community Involvement: Paul has been involved with the Boy Scouts of America for over 20 years, serving as an adult volunteer working directly with youth as well as an instructor for adult leader training courses at the district and council level. He is an Eagle Scout and currently serves as a Commissioner for the Pioneer District in Mesa. Paul is a graduate of Valle del Sol’s Hispanic Leadership Institute and served on the initial advisory board for Valle del Sol’s Donation Center. He has served as a PTO board member and a volunteer with Junior Achievement of Arizona.

Paul has also served his community by being active in politics and serving in elected positions at the local, state and national levels. He served two terms as Chairman for his legislative district and has participated in numerous committees and working groups with government officials and other leaders throughout the State of Arizona.

Favorite Quotes:

“Courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of every virtue at the testing point” – C. S. Lewis

“The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing” – Stephen R. Covey