A man who made his mark in the insurance business and Southport community celebrated his 90th birthday last week. Ralph Hammond Seifert, better known as Cy, celebrated his birthday with about 50 well-wishers he met in various community enterprises.

Those who have worked with him in the Boothbay Region Student Aid Fund, Rotary Club of Boothbay Harbor, Congregational Church, and Southport Island Association joined the three birthday cake celebration on March 27 at Southport Memorial Library.

Seifert spent 55 years in the insurance industry. He began in Philadelphia with Liberty Mutual in 1950 after graduating from Brown University. Seifert received an international affairs degree and a minor in a naval program. He was later commissioned as a U.S. Naval Ensign after 20 years of service.

He worked in insurance companies in Boston and Woburn, Massachusetts before starting a partnership in Mansfield, Massachusetts. Seifert knew he was well-suited for the insurance business at an early age. “I’ve always been a good salesman and the opportunity was there. My personality was a perfect fit."

Seifert became a successful insurance salesman by addressing his clients' needs. He would schedule appointments for times when he could best get to know them as people. “Afternoons are the best time. Mornings, people don’t have time to listen. This gave me a chance to sit down and have a conversation so I could match their needs with the right product,” Seifert said.

In 1988, he retired for the first time. For a time, he did a lot of skiing in New Hampshire and sailing in Southport. But eventually, he got bored and returned to the insurance business. He used his vast experience and knowledge in working for his son’s Annandale, Virginia insurance business. Seifert handled the agency’s dealings in Maine and New Hampshire.

He tried retiring again in 1993, and again in 2001, before finally succeeding in 2008. He and wife Sandra Seifert have owned a home in Southport for 33 years and made it their year round home for the past 10 years. The couple loves living in Southport, but the Boothbay region is also a special place for them. They met in Boothbay Harbor in 1972.

He was in Boothbay Harbor with friends to see all the tall ships come in and Sandra was there on a camping trip. He discovered she shared an interest in skiing and the two became a couple. The Seiferts married in 1979. Sy said it’s no mystery why he fell in love with her. “I got to know her better and found out I love everything about her,” he said.

He also has a deep love of the local community. He has served either as board member or ex officio member of the Boothbay Region Student Aid Fund for  28 consecutive years. He has also moderated several Southport town meetings. All in all, it’s been a long and pretty good resume for a guy named Ralph Hammond Seifert, and nicknamed “Bud” by his family.