About Me

I’ve been an insurance agent since I was 22, but I’ve been around insurance since I was 16. Friends and family who owned agencies in Virginia Beach and Norfolk introduced me to the business years before I made it my career. My career in insurance started when I was just trying to make ends meet, have some income to pay for rent while I was a full-time student back then and was pursuing becoming an Infantry officer.

Had to quickly pivot and change my career goals when I had to support my wife through her second round through nursing school because she had to redo it because of medical reasons, and I've been doing this full-time since. I proudly served my country as an Infantryman and I credit the discipline and mental fortitude it gave me to be able to go above and beyond for all of my clients. No matter how long the conversation, how packed my schedule gets, how hard some lenders/lienholders are to reach to submit documents, it still beats being out in the field and being rained on. Today, I’m proud to work for the Rykman Agencies.

Outside of work, my wife is finishing her nursing degree and will graduate in May 2027. Eventually we want to move down to Georgia near Emory so that way she can work there as a nurse, teach classes there part-time, and get her NP school paid for by Emory University. Our family also includes a three-legged cat named Sir Nigel Blueberry and a Yellow Labrador Retriever puppy named Charlie Yellow the Oaf. Charlie came home with us the day before my birthday and, as of September 2026, is 12 weeks old. In our free time we spend a lot of it going on hikes, going on road trips, flying somewhere for a concert, and lifting.

I created Refer to Don Padrones first and foremost as a direct referral site. I also created it because I’ve heard more than once that I sounded like AI, or that someone was not sure I was a real person. I wanted you to have a place to see who I am before we ever talk.

I’m a husband, a veteran, a pet owner, and an insurance shopper just like the people I help.

Whether you're a client that I've already helped, or someone I'm actively working with and quoting, I appreciate your business and the opportunity to help with your insurance as you guys are the reason why I can provide for my family and also get one step closer to my goal and dream of owning my own insurance agency in the future!