Inside BSI with Tony DaRe at Bethlehem’s Victory Firehouse

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We visited Tony DaRe, founder and CEO of BSI Corporate Benefits, at the company’s headquarters inside Bethlehem’s historic Victory Firehouse.

Instead of sitting down for a traditional interview, Tony took us through the building while talking about how he built BSI, what the company does for employers and their employees, and why culture has become such an important part of the business.

Building BSI differently

Tony started working in insurance when he was 17. Eventually, he realized he wanted to be on the side representing employers, their employees and their families rather than the insurance carriers.

More than two decades later, BSI works with employers on employee benefits, healthcare and workforce strategies. Tony also talks about the way the company has grown around its people, including a workplace where employees can move throughout the building and work alongside different teams.

Culture first

“We almost entirely recruit for culture first,” Tony tells us. “We can teach deductibles and coinsurance.”

We meet a few members of the BSI team along the way and hear more about the company’s people-first approach. Tony also talks about the talent BSI has added to its leadership team and why he is bullish on what the next five, 10 and 15 years could look like.

That growth follows a busy year for BSI, including the 2026 CORE Annual Summit at SteelStacks, which brought nearly 400 business and community leaders together to discuss healthcare costs, workforce pressures, technology, culture and leadership.

Inside the Victory Firehouse

The building is as much a part of the visit as the company itself.

BSI is headquartered inside the former Bethlehem Steel firehouse near SteelStacks. Tony takes us through the workspace, upstairs to the rooftop overlooking South Bethlehem, and into areas that still carry pieces of the building’s history.

One of the most personal connections is a mural based on an old photograph of Tony’s great-grandfather working with steel. Tony’s great-grandfather immigrated from Italy in 1911, and his great-grandfather and grandfather spent a combined 80 years working in the steel industry.

Tony built BSI after deciding he wanted to do things differently in an industry he had been part of since he was a teenager. Today, that company is growing inside a former Bethlehem Steel firehouse with its own connection to his family’s history in the Lehigh Valley.

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