Highstreet Mt. Pleasant Agency
Why do we all love tight-knit communities? Because we love knowing our neighbors, experiencing local opportunities and having a sense of belonging. Small-town communities have a consistent charm of feeling like home, and Highstreet Mt. Pleasant Agency has made their business about making Mt. Pleasant a home for them, their families, and their community.
For over 67 years, and three generations, Highstreet Mt. Pleasant Agency has been providing a network of coverage to the local community. From business insurance expanding daily operations to car insurance for a newly married couple, Highstreet Mt. Pleasant Agency helps provide coverage for what matters most.
Their story began in 1959. Back then, the organization did both insurance and real estate and was owned and operated by Keith Feight and Jack Swift. Keith eventually became the sole owner and then passed the business onto his son, Kurt Feight, who is still part of the organization today. He and a team of eleven, including his daughter Kelly Hudson, have continued to grow and evolve the agency.
In their recent merger with Highstreet Insurance in 2021, the agency was able to expand their offerings by becoming a Highstreet Insurance Partner. Today, they are connecting existing and future clients with enhanced resources and services, and connecting the staff to a community of more than 200 insurance partners throughout the country!
The Feight family, and all of the agency, want to do more for the community than just sell insurance – they want to make a bigger impact! Members of the staff can be found volunteering with The Care Store, United Way, Optimist Club of Mt. Pleasant, Rotary Club of Mt. Pleasant, and the business has even launched its own annual Giving Tuesday Campaign! It’s rare to find a community event without Highstreet representation, with employees volunteering in the annual Mt. Pleasant Christmas Celebration, the Home Builders Association of Central Michigan Sportsman’s Night, and many more.
"Our office decorated luminary bags this summer for Into the Light for Community Cancer Services of Isabella County and a group of us plans to go help out at the event later this month," said Hudson. "The team here is amazing and everyone has the desire to make an impact in one way or another. This community has supported the business my grandpa started for nearly 70 years now, and it has always made sense to find ways to give back."
The Feight family has also established two funds at the Mt. Pleasant Area Community Foundation, the Feight Family Business Scholarship Fund, and the Feight Community Improvement Fund.
Most family funds originate from a family’s personal connection to a project, with the Feight Community Improvement Fund being no different; for this fund, it all began with a bridge. For many years, the bridge on High Street in Mt. Pleasant was somewhat unmemorable, bearing a gray slate color that was more functional than fashionable. The Feight father and son duo decided something should be done to make it an iconic landmark and began raising funds to make the bridge more aesthetically appealing. Phase one of the “Paint the High Street Bridge” was completed in 2013 with phase two finishing in 2018. The committee raised more than $60,000 to fund the project and ensure funds are available for future maintenance. The committee coordinated with MDOT, the Great Lakes Central Railroad Company, and the City of Mt. Pleasant to manage project logistics, timelines and materials, and even had the artwork designed by a Central Michigan University student!
“Back when we were working on the Paint the High Street Bridge project, we had a contest for CMU students to share their proposal for the design," Feight said. "We really liked how the winning design incorporated the school colors for both Mt. Pleasant Public Schools and Central. It has been really neat seeing the bridge change from what it was into a local landmark. I see it in a lot of publications and videos promoting Mt. Pleasant."
After the agency’s Highstreet partnership went public, the “Paint the High Street Bridge” story gained a happy new chapter, showing the connection between community investment and community pride.
Learn more about Spotlight 365: https://www.mt-pleasant.net/spotlight-365