Former UFG CEO continues to give back in retirement

Randy Ramlo has found plenty to do in his first year of retirement.

“You find ways to stay busy,” Ramlo said. “How could I ever have worked eight hours a day and got everything done?”

Ramlo, 62, retired in October 2022 as CEO and president of Cedar Rapids-based commercial insurer UFG. He joined United Fire & Casualty in 1984 as an underwriter, a fresh graduate out of the University of Northern Iowa.

“My initial intention when I came to work here was that I’d work a little while and save a little money and go back and get my MBA,” Ramlo said.

Instead, he held a variety of positions as the company grew through expansion and acquisitions to become UFG. He became its CEO in 2007.

“I traveled a fair amount and put in a fair amount of hours,” he said.

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But Ramlo also found opportunities to apply his management experience to local nonprofits, with tenures on the managing boards of UNI’s School of Business, the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art, the Cedar Rapids Public Library and the United Way of East Central Iowa.

Ramlo’s alma mater recognized him in 2022 with its President's Philanthropy Award, for demonstrating “generosity to UNI through significant leadership giving, dedicated long-term service and assistance to UNI students and faculty through recruitment opportunities and/or programming support.”

Since retirement, he’s stepped back from many volunteer roles, although he remains involved.

“I’ve kind of eased away from the public library board and the Museum of Art board when I decided to retire fully,” he said. “I haven’t been bored once in the first year (of retirement). There’s plenty of things to keep me occupied. I have a lot of hobbies. I like to golf, I like to ride the bicycle, I like to fish. I do a lot of the yard maintenance and things like that around the house. I can keep up with that more than I did.”

Ramlo maintains his board role with the Iowa College Foundation, which supports 23 private liberal arts colleges and universities in the state. Much of the foundation’s funding goes toward student scholarships.

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“The area that got me excited there was the percentage of kids that attend those private colleges, they really stay in Iowa,” he said. “Something like 80 percent of them.”

Ramlo’s post-retirement and yard maintenance experience led to a new volunteer project.

“My wife has gotten me involved in revitalizing the Shakespeare Garden in Ellis Park,” he said. “I’m not much of a gardener — more of a plant waterer,” although he’s also on the Friends of Shakespeare Garden board.

The group was formed in 2019 to restore the park’s garden, started in 1926 to cultivate some of the 175 plants mentioned in the works of William Shakespeare. The garden’s early advisors included artists Grant Wood and Marvin Cone. The site was battered by the 2008 flood and 2020 derecho, prompting neighborhood residents to launch a restoration effort.

Connecting those in or preparing for retirement with volunteer opportunities is a priority at United Way, which launched its 55+ Initiative about a decade ago.

“People tend to prioritize their time, so this year’s focus at United Way is, what inspires you?” said Elizabeth Skaff, community resource and volunteer engagement specialist for Linn County. “I meet individually with each person who wants to volunteer. We’ll talk through what are the things that inspire them, so they can find the volunteer opportunity that fits.”

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Ramlo’s tenure on the UWECI board came “well before retirement.” He was a member of the committee that considered member nonprofits’ applications for grants or other support.

“I got to know the partner organizations,” he said. “I’ve always tried to give to the most basic needs of a city — shelters, child development programs, food pantries and things like that.”

Skaff finds volunteer openings that fit older residents’ range of talents and interests.

“Some people really want to continue to use their skill set in volunteering,” she said. “Some people want to try something new.”

Management and administrative backgrounds are especially in demand.

“A lot of the smaller organizations, some are primarily volunteer led, so it’s really valuable to them to bring in volunteers with project management experience,” Skaff said. “(Volunteers) are able to help lead a program that wouldn’t exist otherwise.”

“It’s a terrific organization, and they do a very good job of vetting the partners they support,” Ramlo said. “They know what’s best about the community.”