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, Life Insurance & Annuities

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 38 Great Grandchildren. He loves to dance and is an avid runner, preaching consistence exercise for a better quality of life and health.

Brandi Murobayashi Controller, Secretary & Treasurer

Experience & Education
Brandi has over 10 years of experience in the accounting industry and 8 years of experience specifically in the life insurance industry. Brandi is a Certified Public Accountant with a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting.

Family & Hobbies
Brandi and her husband Brandon have a daughter and two dogs. In her spare time, Brandi enjoys going to the pool, hiking and spending time with friends and family. Brandi is a transplant from Honolulu Hawaii which is probably why she despises cold weather and is the only person she knows that loves the Arizona summers!

Favorite Quote

If you want something you’ve never had, you have to do something you’ve never done. -Unknown

Linda Williams Administrative Assistant

Linda has been with American Savings Life since 2015 working as an administrative assistant and receptionist, along with providing agent and customer service.

She enjoys seeing our beautiful country and had the awesome opportunity for three years to travel throughout the U.S. with a singing group. She enjoys spending time with family, watching chick flicks and old TV shows/movies, buying (especially at estate sales), and selling on the internet.

Ellen Seger Administrative Assistant

Ellen joined American Savings Life in 2018 with her administrative activities including agent and customer service, new application processing, and policy contract issuing. She previously has over 20 years of experience in legal billing for an Intellectual Property law firm.

When not working, she enjoys reading, puzzles, New Mexico (especially Albuquerque), visiting family in Iowa and Illinois, and spending time with friends.

Melanie Schwendiman Bookkeeper

Melanie came to American Savings Life in 2019 with over 15 years of accounting experience. She handles accounts payable, which includes paying fire insurance and property taxes on all mortgaged properties.

Melanie has been married to her husband Mike for over 20 years, and has three teenagers. She and her family moved to Arizona from Utah in 2014, and she is loving the warm weather and lack of “winter”. When not working, she enjoys spending time in nature, doing puzzles, reading, and serving the community.