Lisa Hamrick - 2018 Charleston Heart Ball Chair

Business Development Manager - BrickStreet Insurance

Meet Our Chair 

Lisa Hamrick has more than 15 years of experience in the field of workers’ compensation insurance having begun her career as a vocational rehabilitation coordinator.  Lisa continued her work at the West Virginia Workers’ Compensation Commission where she managed the Nurses and Return to Work Specialists and was Government Team Leader.  Lisa also assisted in the drafting of legislative Rule 15 and Rule 27.

Lisa joined BrickStreet Insurance at its inception on January 1, 2006. She has held several positions during her tenure at BrickStreet including Business Director of Government Accounts as well as her current position of Business Development Manager.

Lisa holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Social Work from Alderson-Broaddus College.  She currently is a Business Development Manager for BrickStreet Insurance.  As a Business Development Manager Lisa works closely with the staff at BrickStreet to identify marketing opportunities and leads for possible new business,  and to partner with our appointed agencies to assist in the development and retention of business.  As a Business Development Manager Lisa also works with the leadership of 4 Safety Association Programs which include the WV Manufacturers Association, WV Trucking Association, WV Oil Marketers & Grocers Association (OMEGA) and the WV Municipal League.

Lisa is also a member of the board of directors of the American Heart Association – Charleston chapter and is a licensed property and casualty agent in WV.  She resides in Elkview with her husband Ed and their new puppy Bella.  

 Lisa's Story

"I remember riding with my parents and sisters in our station wagon as we made our way to my grandparent’s house in Euclid, Ohio.  I was going to be entering the Cleveland Clinic in a few days for heart surgery.  We were fortunate that my Mom’s parents lived so close to Cleveland Clinic.  I was 19 years old at the time and had just completed my junior year of college -it was the summer of 1983.

I had what I would call the typical childhood growing up in the 1970’s.  I remember playing outside for hours and riding our bikes all over the neighborhood. And who could forget those pogo sticks we all had to have?  I don’t remember when I started experiencing issues with my heart only that in junior high school I passed out during a choir concert. I recall being told not to stand with your knees locked.  

I graduated from high school and began my college life at Alderson-Broaddus College.  I began feeling very tired all the time so my Dad got an appointment for me with his cardiologist.  You see Dad has lived with heart disease his entire adult life.  Dad’s cardiologist examined me and did an echocardiogram in his office and could tell right away what my problem was.  I had patent ductus arteriosus.   PDA is a condition in which a blood vessel called the ductus arteriosus fails to close normally in an infant soon after birth.  This condition leads to a heart murmur as well as abnormal blood flow between the aorta and pulmonary artery- the two main blood vessels that carry blood from the heart.  The doctor said my heart was working harder than it should due to the abnormal blood flow.  I needed surgery to correct this problem as the vessel continued to pump blood causing the heart murmur he heard.   I had been living with this condition since birth!  At that time, no one in WV was performing surgical repair of PDA in adults so my journey to Cleveland Clinic began.

I realize now that I was fortunate to survive with the condition undetected for so long.  The surgery went well and I spent a few weeks at my grandparent’s house recuperating.  That was almost 30 years ago.

 I tell my story in hopes of raising awareness in women that heart disease is not just a man’s disease.  We as women are the caretakers and superwomen who do it all at home and work!  And we tend to put ourselves last.  You must take care of your heart so you will be around to receive all that love you give brought back to you!

Health and happiness!"

Lisa Hamrick