Our entire team is cross-trained and proficient in today’s opportunities as well as ever-changing regulations, which means you receive a level of experience unmatched by our competition. Trust us with your challenges, and we’ll exceed your expectations. Our people, our expertise, our technology and our Abentras Access eServices platform combine to place your benefits platform in the elite, mirroring those of most Fortune 500 companies. All Principles, Directors, Executive Assistants and Coordinators hold active Life and Health Insurance licenses.
Owen Wingate
President
Owen was born and raised in Jacksonville Beach, Florida. He graduated from Florida State University with a degree in Political Science. In 1988, he began his insurance career with Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company as a life insurance career agent and later began to specialize in employee benefits. Owen is a 17-year Life and Qualifying Member of the Million Dollar Round Table, our industry’s leading sales achievement organization. He has been an active member of the Jacksonville Association of Health Underwriters and served as president in 2007-2008.
Fun Fact
In high school I collected old Volkswagens and could remove an entire engine and replace it in less than 17 minutes, which came in very handy as they were always broken, I continue to thank my father for never purchasing a welder as I really love the insurance business.
West Wingate
RHU
Vice President
West was born and raised in Jacksonville Beach, Florida. He graduated from Florida State University with a bachelor’s degree in Marketing in 1989 and is a faithful member of the Lambda Chi Alpha Fraternity. West began his insurance career with Coordinated Programs, Inc. in Jacksonville in 1990, specializing in the sale, service, and implementation of formal executive disability insurance plans. He is also a 21-year Life and Qualifying Member of Million Dollar Round Table, our industry’s leading sales achievement organization.
Fun Fact
West loves spending time in Hawkinsville Georgia living the farm life. During a recent prescribed forestry burn the wind shifted on him and he burned down the neighbors very historic school house dating back to 1918. Over 12 state & local fire trucks & rescue vehicles responded. He still remains very good friends with the neighbors as he convinced them it was an eyesore & had termites.
Kelly Kenne
SPHR, SHRM-SCP
Chief Operating Officer
Kelly was born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida. She graduated from the University of North Florida with a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice. Kelly joined Owen and West in 2001, specializing in consolidated invoicing and customer service administration. As the director of operations she is responsible for overseeing and directing all aspects of our operations – from managing staff to coordinating our technology and services – to ensure each one of our clients receives the ultimate in customer service.
Fun Fact
Kelly is the team motorhead and car nut. She doesn’t like the thought of riding in a car that goes less than 100 mph and has less than 8 cylinders. Tesla is the enemy, as it has no rumble.
Jason C. Griggs
CRPC
Agent
Jason was born and raised in Ft Wayne, IN. He graduated from Indiana University with a bachelor’s degree in Business. In 2004, he and his wife Carrie relocated to Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. He began his insurance and financial services career in Jacksonville in 2004 and maintains a 2-15 Health & Life insurance license along with a Series 7 and 66 securities license. Jason recently complete his Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor designation. He enjoys community involvement opportunities with the Rotary Club of Ponte Vedra Beach and has been a member since 2007 and served on the Board of Directors in 2010-2012.
Fun Fact
I worked at a Turkey farm when I was a kid in Indiana. It was the hottest, nastiest smelliest place you could imagine. I realized at that point I needed a really good education and career to keep me from ever going back!. To this day I still won’t eat turkey even at the best BBQ Restaurants!
Lori Miller
SHRM-CP
Executive Assistant
Lori was born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida. She graduated from Florida Community College of Jacksonville with an Associate of Arts degree. She began her insurance career at State Farm in the Life and Health department in 1990. Lori joined the Abentras family in 2004 as an executive assistant and specializes in assisting our individual clients with their life and disability insurance needs.
Fun Fact
I’m a no clutter/organized obsessed person. I have everything arranged in such a way I know if someone even slightly moves an item on my desk. Co-workers have been known “to get me” by turning everything on my desk upside down, cleaning out the hole punch on my desk, using an entire pack of stickies all over my items, or littering it with paper clips to drive me crazy.
Mary Othmer
Premium Services Administrative Assistant
Mary was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, and moved to Jacksonville Beach, Florida in 2004. She has worked in the employee benefit field since 2007, and recently joined the Abentras team in 2012.
Fun Fact
Enjoys traveling to Italy a few times a year to visit her family in Napoli. I love singing Italian opera, especially on Sundays while cooking with Vino and Dino (Dean Martin).
Sisi Castro
Group Benefit Enrollment Specialist
Sisi was born in the Dominican Republic and moved to Jacksonville, Florida in 1990. She graduated from FCCJ in 1998 with Associates of Arts Degree and perused a career in the mortgage lending and Real Estate industries. Sisi joined Abentras in 2017 as a licensed health insurance agent
Fun Fact
I won a dance contest once, Reggaeton to be exact. Reggaeton is a genre that originated from Puerto Rico, basically Puerto Rican reggae.
Erin Barry
Group Benefit Enrollment Specialist
Erin was born in Tyler, Texas and raised in Orlando, Florida. She graduated from Sante Fe College in Gainesville, Florida in 2002 and moved to Jacksonville to attend University of North Florida where she pursued a degree in Psychology. Erin joined the Abentras team in 2010 as Client Advocate and Group Benefits Assistant.
Fun Fact
I am a part of a motorcross family. My husband and two daughters are avid dirt bike riders. My role is cheerleader (because I would definitely end up breaking something – myself or the bike or both).
Courtney Rolison
Group Benefit Enrollment Specialist
Courtney was born and raised in Jacksonville Beach, FL. She graduated from Florida State College at Jacksonville and went on to University of Florida to pursue a degree in Marketing. Courtney has over 10 years of financial and retail customer service experience and energetically strives to ensure the timely and successful delivery of solutions, therefore creating long term relationships with customers. Courtney joined the Abentras team in 2014 as a Group Benefit Account Coordinator.
Fun Fact
I love the outdoors, running, biking and scuba diving. On one of our recent scuba diving adventures we found a group of sea turtles, one of them tried to get frisky with me and kissed me in the face! The big fat kiss left me with black eyes the rest of the vacation. EKKK
Stacie Gouldthread
Group Benefit Marketing Coordinator
Stacie was born in the Panama Canal Zone and moved to the Jacksonville area in 1979. She earned her Associate of Arts Degree from the University of North Florida in 1989. She has worked in the insurance industry since 1993. She joined the Abentras team in 2017 bringing us her experience with having worked in the benefits arena from a carrier, broker and large employer perspective. She supports the sales and account management staff as a Group Benefit Administrative Assistant.
Fun Fact
Although there isn’t much use for this outside of 7th grade, I can write backwards and upside down & backwards.
Ashley Turko
Group Benefit Service Specialist
Ashley was born and raised in Pensacola, Florida. She graduated from Florida State University in 2015 with a bachelor’s degree in Fashion Merchandising and is a member of Kappa Alpha Theta. Ashley moved to Jacksonville in 2015 and joined the Abentras team in 2016 as an administrative assistant.
Fun Fact
In elementary and middle school I was the point guard for my school’s basketball team – I fouled out every game. Everyone said I was a scrappy little player – AKA Scrappy Williams.
Katina Etheredge
Group Benefit System Analyst
Katina was born and raised in St. Cloud, Florida and moved to Ponte Vedra Beach in 1998. She graduated from University of Central Florida with a Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education. Katina joined the Abentras team in 2014 as a Group Benefits Coordinator and oversees our Abentras Access platform for our clients.
Fun Fact
I absolutely love music and attempt to meet the band any opportunity I can (so-called groupie). My first backstage experience was Hootie and the Blowfish and my absolute favorite was meeting Simon Le Bon from Duran Duran. I have dozens of autographs and pictures in my collection.
Jennye Figueroa
Group Benefit Implementation Specialist
Jennye was born and raised in Jacksonville, FL. She joined our team in 2014 with over 10 years of experience in the insurance industry. She is our Group Benefits Implementation Specialist, implementing all contracting, reporting, and compliance for our clients.
Fun Fact
I love to travel, experience new cuisine, explore nature and adventure off the beaten path. I’ve visited Cayman Islands, St. Thomas, St. John, Bahamas, lived in Puerto Rico for 5 years exploring the entire island and sister islands of Vieques, Culebra, Isla Caja de Muertos, and Cayo Mata la Gata. I visited Lima and Cusco Peru traveling by plane, train, car, bus and hiking Machu Picchu. While visiting Peru, I ate cuy (guinea pig) and anticuchos (cow heart). I wasn’t a fan of cuy, but I would definitely eat anticuchos again.
Heather Kaelin
PHR, SHRM-CP
Premium Services Team Lead
Heather was born in San Diego, California and raised in Jacksonville, Florida. She graduated from Florida State College of Jacksonville with a Bachelor of Applied Science in Supervision and Management. Prior to joining Abentras in 2007, she served in the US ARMY Reserves and served overseas in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Heather manages our Consolidated Premiums Services department (Bille) and is the “Abentras Problem Solver”
Fun Fact
I am an ARMY Veteran – manned a M2 .50 Caliber machine gun, worked aside many foreign militaries, and was an armed bodyguard on USO Shows throughout Kuwait – Heather aka 50Cal
Audrey Hanson
Premium Services Account Coordinator
Audrey Hanson was born and raised in Madison, Wisconsin. She moved to Jacksonville, Florida in 2001 where she started her career path in the financial services field. Audrey works in the Consolidated Premiums Services department where she performs invoicing, processing and reconciling of group insurance premiums. Audrey joined Abentras in 2015
Fun Fact
As a Wisconsin girl, I spent a lot of time around hockey, cows, cheese and beer. A few skills I learned along the way were how to do a toe-touch on ice and how to drink a beer with my foot, using no hands.
Elena Pigalova
Premium Services Account Coordinator
Elena was born and raised in Russia, where she earned her first Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Foreign Philology (English Language and Literature) and Translation in 2009. She was awarded the degree of Philologist and Teacher with honors. Elena moved to Jacksonville, FL in 2009. She graduated from the University of North Florida in 2018 with a Bachelor’s of Science Degree in Business Administration majoring in Accounting. She joined the Abentras team in 2018. Elena works in the consolidated Premium Service department (Bille) specializing in invoices and reconciling and processing group insurance premiums.
Fun Fact
Elena likes Literature, History and Languages. She studied Old English and Latin. Per aspera ad astra!
Donna Brown
Premium Services Coordinator
Donna was born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida. As a Premium Services Coordinator with over 14 years of insurance industry experience, she joined our team in 2018. Donna works in the Consolidated Premium Services department specializing in invoicing, processing and reconciling of group insurance premiums.
Fun Fact
Donna aka Downtown Donna Brown – I have been a Mobile DJ for over 25 years. I turned my collection and love of my music into something fun to share with others.
Darlene Allmaras
Compliance and Auditing
Darlene was born and raised in Tinley Park, IL the south side of Chicago. In 1995 she moved to Orlando, Fl, and attended Valencia Community College. For the past 20 years, she has worked in the Special Ed Department K-12 in South Carolina and Georgia providing technology support to the teachers and state-required reporting. She joined the Abentras team in 2021 to specialize in Compliance and Auditing.
Fun Fact
After graduating high school, I enlisted in the United States Navy. I served 5 years active duty and I’m a Gulf War Veteran. I’m still actively involved with Veterans. Providing support for those who have served this country by volunteering in various organizations is a passion of mine.
Brittany Medlin
Group Benefit Service Specialist
Brittany was born in Hamilton, Bermuda. She spent her early childhood years in Rota, Spain and later settled in Jacksonville, Florida. She graduated from the University of North Florida in 2015 with a bachelor’s degree in English as well as Anthropology. Brittany originally joined the Abentras team in 2015 as a Group Benefit Account Coordinator. Brittany now specializes as a Group Benefit Service Specialist and excels in servicing Abentras clients in their day-to-day needs.
Fun Fact
During college, I had the pleasure of being a cheerleader for our minor league baseball team, the Jacksonville Suns. My favorite part was dressing up as a mustard bottle and slingshotting t-shirts into the crowd with my fellow colleagues, Ketchup and Hot Dog!
Christina Ossi
Group Benefit Service Specialist
Christina was born and raised in Jacksonville, FL, where she began her career in group benefits in 1999 and has worked on both the carrier and broker sides of the business. She has extensive experience with core benefits, Medicare, voluntary and worksite benefits as well. Christina very happily joined the Abentras team as a Group Benefit Account Coordinator in 2017. Christina now specializes as a Group Benefit Service Specialist and excels in servicing Abentras clients in their day-to-day needs.
Fun Fact
Growing up I had the privilege of vacationing in Barcelona and Coma Ruga in Spain, Multiple cities in Morocco, Cancun, Cozumel, the Bahamas, the Virgin Islands and San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Raquel Rodriguez
Group Benefit Account Assistant
Raquel was born and raised in Miami, FL and moved to Jacksonville, FL in 2017. She studied Business Administration and was also a Student Athlete for the Women’s Fast Pitch softball team at Miami Dade College. She pursued a career in property management. Raquel joined Abentras in 2022.
Fun Fact
Since the age of 2 my nick name was Rocky and still is. I played softball since the age of 9 years old. I am a classic car fanatic, my dream car is the 1979 Corvette Stingray and the 1969 Camaro. I’m definitely a chevy girl! I also have a passion for health and fitness, if I’m not on the beach tanning, you will definitely find me in the gym.
