Dec. 01--Travelers CEO Jay S. Fishman stepped down Monday, four months after announcing he had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
Fishman led the company when it was part of Citigroup, and, for the last 11 years, after he arranged for Travelers to acquire the St. Paul Cos.
Fishman, 63, was able to work for a year after he learned he had the progressive neurodegenerative disease commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease, but decided to step down before his health worsened to allow an orderly transition. In honor of his service, Gov. Dan Malloy declared Monday Jay S. Fishman Day.
Alan Schnitzer, who had led Travelers Cos.' business and international insurance unit, is the new CEO.
Travelers, one of 30 companies in the Dow Jones Industrial Average, has its corporate headquarters in New York but has its largest operations in Hartford, where the company was founded.
Fishman sent out one last holiday letter before stepping down, though this one was typed, rather than in his handwriting, as in years past. "Please know that the words below are mine and that the only thing that has stopped me from writing it by hand is that my hand is no longer strong enough to write a letter and have it be legible," he wrote. "My spirit and intent are as strong as ever and these words come from my heart even if they are not from my hand."
He said it's been challenging as his disease progresses, and said, "The letters, emails, notes and personal stories that you have shared with us have been more sustaining than there are words to express."
Fishman has donated millions of dollars to ALS research and support since he learned he has the illness. According to Forbes, this includes a $5 million donation toward a $25 million research initiative at Johns Hopkins to analyze genetic, protein and biological data from ALS patients to better understand various versions of the disease.
He also contributed $1.5 million to a program at Boston Children's Hospital that records ALS patients speaking so that after the disease robs them of the ability to speak, they don't have to rely on computer-generated voices.
"At every company, there comes a time for new leadership," Fishman wrote employees in August. "Because of the progression of my neuromuscular condition, this time has come a little earlier than I had hoped."
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