Berkshire shareholders look beyond Warren Buffett, Charlie Munger – The Peninsula

Berkshire shareholders look beyond Warren Buffett, Charlie Munger – The Peninsula

OMAHA, Neb.: Berkshire Hathaway Inc shareholders face a question that Warren Buffett sought to tackle at the company's annual meeting: How will Berkshire fare when he's no longer around?

Buffett, perhaps the world's greatest investor, and with the star power to draw fans from around the world, is 91. His longtime vice chairman, Charlie Munger, is 98.

Shareholders who watched them speak for hours at the CHI Health Center arena in Berkshire's hometown of Omaha, Nebraska face the reality they are in the twilight of their careers.

Still, Buffett's loyal investors say they will still stick with Berkshire, citing the honesty, humility, integrity and trust they believe his company and its leadership, current and future, embody.

"The company is more than Mr. Buffett," said Ernesto Medina, a 61-year-old pastor from Omaha. "It really is about people that agree on a certain set of values and ethics. And those don't change. You know--or at least I hope."

Berkshire, whose dozens of businesses include the BNSF railroad, Geico car insurance, and many energy, manufacturing and retailing companies, has a succession plan in place.

Greg Abel, 59, a vice chairman overseeing non-insurance operations, would replace Buffett as chief executive when the need arose, while Vice Chairman Ajit Jain, 70,