Earlier this week, I took my car in for a day’s worth of routine services at my dealership, Classic Ford. Ordinarily, I’d say that car maintenance is a mundane fact of life and certainly nothing to write home about, but this time around was quite the experience! My good friend, Dean Ray, is the Service Lane Manager at Classic Ford, and he asked if I needed a loaner car for the day. When I told him sure, Dean said he had a real treat in store for me, and he was not wrong! He took me out into the parking lot and set me up with a Mustang Mach-E that had recently arrived at the dealership. I must say, I’ve never had a more pleasurable driving experience than the 24 hours that I had that car!

The Mustang Mach-E is a first-class, all-electric vehicle that excelled across the board! I was impressed by its handling, acceleration, and amenities; the center monitor was truly state-of-the-art technology, and it didn’t hurt that the sound system was HD Dolby quality! Simply put, I fell in love with that car!

For anyone looking to buy a car, I’d highly recommend checking out electric vehicles. The Mach-E has a range of about 270 miles between charges, and its owners will not only save thousands of dollars in fuel costs over the lifespan of the car, but they will also reduce their carbon footprint. After this experience, I am sold on electric vehicles, and my next car is going to be all-electric for sure!

At the end of last year, I mentioned that throughout 2021, I’m going to periodically feature businesses I admire in the KellyGram. Several weeks ago, I lauded Nick’s House of Pizza for its delicious food and welcoming environment, and this week I want to talk about my appreciation for the folks at United Community Bank.

Through my good friends Chris and Doug Millar, Mike Kelly Law Group developed a banking relationship with United Community Bank at the beginning of last year, and we have been extremely impressed with their client service. We started off working with Market President of the SC Coastal Region, Christie Manning, and Vice President of Relationship Management, Nate Rohler, and continue to be very satisfied in our dealings with those two outstanding individuals.

Late last year, United Community Bank announced that it would be expanding its operations to Lexington and Forest Acres, and yesterday we were honored to attend the ribbon cutting of the Forest Acres location. We are delighted to be working with United Community Bank Midlands President, Shannon Stephens, Regional Banking Manager, Morgan Leath, and their first-class team in the Midlands!

I cannot emphasize enough the exceptional customer service that the folks at United Community Bank have shown to our firm. I highly recommend their services, but in case you don’t want to take my word for it, JD Powers has voted them best in customer satisfaction 7 out of the last 8 years!

Thanks to our friends at United Community Bank for such an exceptional customer experience!

As everybody knows, I am pretty proud of my Irish heritage, and our latest attorney hire, Dean Diamaduros, is equally proud of his Greek roots.

Dean grew up in Union, SC as the son of lawyer Sammy Diamaduros, who still practices with his brother Pete Diamaduros. Upon graduation from high school, Dean went to Wofford College and then attended the University of South Carolina School of Law. He has been an attorney for the last several years working in Spartanburg, SC for a fine firm, but feels that his skills and talents would be better suited to the plaintiff’s practice of law.

Dean is clearly a people person and wants to use his legal skills to help others on a daily basis. Dean moving to Columbia will bring him closer to his mother, sisters, grandparents, and girlfriend, all of whom live in this vicinity. His first day will be Monday, May 10, 2021, and we are beyond excited to have him join the Mike Kelly Law Group Family! Welcome Dean!

The University of South Carolina School of Music, ably led by its long-time Dean, Dr. Tayloe Harding, is one of the flagship programs at my alma mater. It is my privilege to support the School by serving on the Board of the Friends of the School of Music. For nearly 30 years, the Friends of the School of Music have provided $30,000 annually for scholarship support for students of music, and each year, the Musical Feast fundraiser has been a staple to help raise those funds.

This year, the Musical Feast will be hosted virtually due to the pandemic, but it is not to be missed! It will take place on May 5th from 5:30 pm to 6:30 pm and will feature performances by School of Music students. The event will also include a virtual silent auction where you can bid on some great items, such as a weekend stay at Kingston Plantation Resort in Myrtle Beach, a weekend at Wild Dunes, a private choral performance at your home or business, and — my personal favorite — the opportunity to guest-conduct the Carolina Fight Song with The Carolina Band!

Registration to the Musical Feast is only $5, and you can do so here. Register today to support the University of South Carolina School of Music scholarship fund and have some fun in the meantime!

At the end of 2020, I promised I was going to highlight in upcoming KellyGrams some of my very good friends and favorite local businesses. Today, I want to feature one of my go-to restaurants, Nick’s House of Pizza on Sunset Drive in West Columbia. Nick’s has fantastic food, great customer service, and the owners—Nick Gabriel and his son, Andrew—are very close friends of the Mike Kelly Law Group family. My culinary skills leave much to be desired, so you’ll find me dining there 2 to 3 times a week for lunch and occasionally for dinner. The firm also regularly uses Nick’s excellent catering services, and as a matter of fact, they catered Mike Kelly Law Group’s Administrative Professionals Day luncheon this past Wednesday!

It’s hard for me to recommend just one entrée from the Nick’s House of Pizza menu, as everything I have tried there has been excellent, but I have to say that their chicken tips, citrus-marinated salmon, and their pork chop are three of my favorites. They also, of course, offer pizzas, as well as pastas, strombolis, calzones, and other fabulous Greek, Italian, and American dishes. I encourage you to give Nick’s a try, and tell them Uncle Mike sent you!

Recently, I have been thinking a lot about the topic of leadership and my experiences in leadership roles over the years. Leadership takes many forms, and nearly everyone is a leader, whether it be at work, at church, at home, or in the community. Often, leaders have no special designation or title; sometimes, a person exhibits leadership by simply having the courage to do what is right in a difficult situation, as opposed to what is popular, easy, or self-serving.

I recently watched a short webinar series on leadership entitled In Good Company, which focused on two individuals with very different styles of leadership. The first was a North Carolina dentist who used a traditional leadership approach to grow his practice from a single employee to a multi-office enterprise with over 350 employees across the state. The second individual was a servant leader named Jim Stallings, whose approach to leadership focused on the development and growth of employees versus the company as a whole. Both shared insightful tips, and while they approached the subject from different angles, they agreed on an important takeaway: leadership means making decisions with character and integrity.

Although I’ve been around for quite some time now, and I’ve participated in leadership training and taken on various leadership positions, I am glad that I took the time to watch In Good Company. It inspired me to reflect on how I might improve my own approach to leadership, and maybe even taught this old dog some new tricks! It pays to listen to the best and the brightest!

In this week’s KellyGram, I’d like to spotlight an exceptional member of our community and the Mike Kelly Law Group legal team: my law partner, Lisa Long Cotten. Lisa has been with the firm since 2007, and her professional, community, and civic accomplishments are second to none. As an exemplary advocate and consummate professional, Lisa commands only the utmost respect from her fellow Bar members, as well as a reputation as an esteemed Social Security Disability attorney. Her clients similarly recognize the level of dedication and care with which Lisa pursues their cases, and they don’t forget it. It is not uncommon for Lisa to receive a note or phone call from a client expressing their gratitude for her help months—or even years—after their case resolved!

Not only is Lisa an exceptional advocate, but she is also a distinguished leader among the South Carolina Bar. Most recently, Lisa was recognized by the SC Bar Foundation for her outstanding work as an officer of the Board, but her involvement with the Bar does not end there. Lisa is an active member of numerous Bar committees, associations, and panels, earning her recognition as a South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Leadership in Law Honoree in 2020.

Lisa’s leadership and service extends beyond the Bar and into the community. She is a member of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and Phi Beta Kappa National Honor Society, a Riley Fellow, and she currently serves on the Richland County Recreation Commission Board of Commissioners. Needless to say, Lisa’s drive and commitment to serving others is nothing short of remarkable. We at Mike Kelly Law Group are honored and blessed have her on our team—thank you, Lisa, for all that you do!

Today is Good Friday, which is the most solemn day in the Christian church. Mike Kelly Law Group is closed in observance of this holiday, and we are looking forward to a beautiful Easter Sunday! I will be attending the outdoor Easter service at my beloved home church, St. Martin’s-in-the-Fields, and I am so looking forward to gathering with my fellow parishioners. It has been too long since I’ve been able to do this, and although the church’s virtual services have gotten me through the past year, it simply isn’t the same as worshiping and communing with others.

This Easter, all of us, regardless of our faith, can rejoice in the fact that the pandemic is slowly receding, and we can all look forward to the time when it will be a distant, unpleasant memory. However you choose to spend this weekend, may it be a blessed one! Enjoy yourself and take advantage of this early spring weather!

It’s springtime in South Carolina, and while I enjoy every season in our beautiful state (except maybe winter!), spring is hands down my favorite. So far, this year is proving to be no exception; I like the way things are trending! Coinciding with the ramp-up in vaccinations—which will hopefully reduce the impact of COVID on our daily lives—the weather is becoming lovelier by the day. Warmer temperatures means more outdoor activities: yard work, cookouts, and for the time being, socially distanced gatherings. I, for one, am looking forward to getting my golf clubs out of storage this weekend and hitting the links!

With the cold weather limiting our ability to spend time with friends and loved ones during the pandemic, the past winter felt particularly long and dreary. At last, we are seeing more opportunities to engage in outdoor events and activities with one another, and we should make the most of it! I encourage you to get outside, soak in some sunlight, and shake off those winter doldrums! Enjoy your spring, and have a great weekend!

As I have mentioned in past KellyGrams, the Gills Creek Watershed Association is among my favorite non-profits in Columbia, and I’ve had the privilege of serving on its board for the past four years. I admit that, historically, I was not particularly attuned to environmental issues; my interest in political and community matters generally occupied most of my attention outside of work and family. However, I was approached at church one day by two past GCWA board members who asked me to join, primarily due to my fundraising experience. I agreed, and over the past four years, I have become a stalwart advocate for this wonderful organization!

The Gills Creek Watershed runs along the series of creeks and lakes spanning from the Spring Valley area of Columbia down to the Congaree River. Gills Creek Watershed Association is an advocate for this impaired ecosystem, and there are currently plans on the drawing board to create a greenway with trails, bike paths, etc. in the area, a matter which is now in the hands of the Richland County Government. In the meantime, the GCWA has managed to obtain, through state, federal, and City of Columbia funding, a combined $650,000 grant to restore the waterway along Crowson Road, which is perhaps its most visible spot in Columbia.

For those of you who are not familiar with Crowson Road, this is the section of Gills Creek that runs from Fort Jackson Boulevard to Devine Street, adjacent to the Rosewood Crossing shopping center. This area was heavily damaged by the historic flood of October 2015, and being located in a heavily-trafficked part of Columbia, it is particularly susceptible to runoff pollution. As part of the project, the slope of the bank along this portion of Gills Creek will be adjusted to reduce erosion and runoff, and vegetation and plants will be incorporated to hold the banks in place and help remove pollutants. Construction is anticipated to begin as early as mid-April, weather permitting!

I’m excited for this improvement to our city and our local environment, and I am proud to be a part of the group that is making it happen! I encourage you all to consider supporting Gills Creek Watershed Association, Congaree Riverkeeper, and other like-minded organizations focused on keeping our community clean and beautiful!