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With the holiday season quickly approaching, what better time to spotlight longtime Spero member David Risher? Known by many as Santa, David not only brings a smile to the faces of the #TeamSpero members he interacts with but also the countless people who know him by his red suit and white beard!
David will join us in branches this holiday season to bring some holiday cheer to our Cookies with Santa stops! Continue reading to learn a little more about David and how you can meet him this winter.
WHAT IS YOUR SPERO STORY?
David first joined Spero, then SC Telco, more than 27 years ago! When we say longtime member, we mean it! He joined long before many of our current locations opened and did much of his business through our old location that used to be on Toy Street in Greenville. As he reflected on his journey with Spero, David was reminded of the story of buying his Pontiac GT. He shared fond memories of his car while reflecting on the way this car started his relationship with Spero.
Beyond purchasing his Pontiac, David has had many other products through us! He’s had checking accounts, auto loans, savings accounts, and credit cards through Spero and throughout all the years, he says that we’ve been there through so much.
When asked why he continues to choose Spero as his financial institution, David said, “Spero has always been good to me, I’ve never had any reason to leave!”
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE SPERO MEMORY?
David began by sharing about the relationships he has built over the years with all the different members of Team Spero! He then went on to reflect on an incident in which his home was broken into and how the person who broke in ended up stealing some of his financial information and some of his checks. The person wrote checks to himself and tried to cash them at one of our locations. While this could have been a big headache, David was thankful that we had the person on camera in our branch and that we were able to save him from losing any funds in his accounts.
WHAT IS YOUR SANTA STORY?
David has been Santa for around 12 years now! He said, “The Lord blessed him with grey hair at a young age,” which allowed him to take on the role. David primarily stays near the Upstate of South Carolina but says he will travel up to 100 miles from his house to be Santa for private parties, family pictures, and other events.
It must be a family affair as David first began his Santa journey after his sister starting dressing up as Mrs. Claus for small events. He started doing it on a small scale during the holiday season and would give small gifts to the children that would come to see him. He then had many ask if he did it for families or private events, which is when he began doing it on a more professional level.
WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE THING ABOUT BEING SANTA?
“Seeing the smile on kid’s faces!”
When asked this question, David laughed and shared about the times he has been out at the mall or even at church and has seen little children tugging on their mom and dad’s sleeve saying, “Look, there’s Santa!” David said he loves seeing the joy that it brings to everyone. He ended by saying something that we can all live by, “When you can make someone smile in this day and age, I feel like you’re really doing something good.”
Don’t forget to join us this holiday season as Santa visits our branches throughout December! Stay tuned to our social media and website to stay up to date.
