The Namath family name is well known in Beaver County and far beyond, in great part to the AFL and NFL football legend and Super Bowl MVP Joe Namath, 80, who was quarterback for the New York Jets and the Los Angeles Rams. A Beaver Falls native, “Broadway Joe” was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985. Yet various other members of the local Namath family are just as loved and valued in Beaver County.
“The Namath name in western Pennsylvania goes beyond football,” comments Franklin L. Namath, Jr., 56, of Chippewa Township. “Joe is my dad’s little brother, and here in western Pennsylvania, my uncles all made names for themselves even before Joe ever threw a pass in the NFL.”
Many local residents knew Frank’s father, Franklin L. Namath, Sr., of Chippewa Township, who founded Namath Insurance Advisors after working in the insurance industry since 1959. “My dad was laid off from the steel mill, and had a wife—my mom—and two kids at home at that time,” Frank Jr. explains. “He started working for Monumental Life Insurance and earned his way up to being a manager. The next promotion to regional manager would have involved travel, and that wasn’t in his interest. So, when Nationwide recruited him in the late 1970s to help advise other agents how to sell variable life insurance, he started his own agency with Nationwide, which eventually became Namath Insurance Advisors.”
The company takes a personalized approach to providing various types of insurance—including life, financial, Medicare, property and casualty, and business. Frank Jr. joined the company in 1995, alongside with his older brother, Michael Namath, 66, of Beaver Falls, who came on board in 1984. “Dad was diagnosed with dementia in April 2023, which progressed rapidly, but he continued to work up until that time at the age of 85.”
Frank, Sr. passed on January 1, making this month the first Father’s Day without him. “The blessing is that Dad was able to pass away without having to go to a nursing home and he still could recognize all of us. Dad was comical, charismatic and jovial until the very last day, taking everything in stride, and was involved in everything going on during the family Christmas holiday. In fact, on New Year’s Eve, he was on the phone, calling friends and family to wish everyone a happy new year. He took a nap before the of start of the Alabama game the next day and around halftime, my mother [Edith Namath, 87], couldn’t wake him. He went peacefully in his sleep, just as he wanted. Dad was laid out on January 5, his birthday. He would have been 86.”
While losing a parent is tough, it greatly emphasized for Frank, Michael and their family the importance of the business they are in. “This is what we do for a living. We deal with the senior market, veterans and the VA, and Medicare. The reason why I strive to be in front of as many seniors as possible is because they need someone who intimately knows the in’s and out’s of the medical and insurance systems and who can advocate for them. There are benefits to folks for using a Medicare broker as opposed to dealing directly with insurance carriers, for example. We give clients different options.”
Another arm of their company—a partnership with Beaver Valley Independent Insurance Group in Monaca—assists clients with home, auto and commercial insurance, which enables Frank and Michael to focus on life insurance, long-term care and Medicare.
“What happens in this industry is that we get pigeonholed for just one thing, like home or auto. Because we are fully licensed in all aspects of the insurance industry, we can sit down with seniors and those who are nearing retirement age and say, ‘Okay, this is what you want to do? Here is how you can get there.’ We ask, ‘How’s your health? What do you value most and want to protect?’ We take the conversation from checkers to chess. Then we find the best solution for that individual.”
While Frank and Michael have made a name for themselves in the insurance industry, they are quick to give recognition to their other family members’ achievements, as well. “My sister Lisa, 64, lives in Brighton Township and has had a successful nursing career in Atlanta, Georgia, before moving back home three years ago to work at Allegheny Health Network and to spend time with our parents. My Uncle John Namath, now deceased, was a master sergeant in the United States Army and worked at the U.S. Post Office. We are very proud of his service to our country and that he was one of the founding members of the Veteran’s Association in Beaver County. My Uncle Robert Namath, also now deceased, was a lifelong resident of Beaver County and worked for many years at Anchor Hawking in Monaca. And my Aunt Rita Sims, 86, of Vanport, served in the U.S. Air Force, is now a retired nurse, and was director of nursing at Friendship Ridge in Brighton Township. So yeah, the Namath family influence spans far and wide.”
Namath Insurance Advisors is located at 3401 Brodhead Road in Aliquippa. To learn more, call (724) 544-5155, email frank@namathinsurance.com or visit namathinsurance.com.
Frank Jr. and his parents (front) enjoying family time together with, Lisa, Michael, and Lisa (Michael’s wife).
Frank Sr. with his siblings and his mother, Rose.
Frank, Sr. with some of his family members.
Frank Namath, Sr.
Frank, Sr. with his legendary brother, Joe Namath.
