His father joined the industry in the mid-1940s after taking Johnston and his brother to a small amusement park in California. Seeing it as a profitable business, Sam Johnston Sr. decided to start a live pony ride and travel with larger carnivals.

He eventually purchased and built other rides to create a small carnival called Johnston’s Rides, later renamed Johnston’s Amusements. Johnston said he and his brother were cheap help for his father’s business. One of Johnston’s first jobs was operating a children’s car ride at the grand opening of a McDonald’s when he was 8 years old.

“I hated it,” Johnston said. “I’m sitting there having to pull this lever to get it to start and then pull this lever to stop. I didn’t want to do that — I was 8 years old!”

Johnston continued to assist his father’s carnival business as he grew up in California. He attended Sacramento State to study physical engineering before changing his major to business. After serving in the army during the Vietnam War, Johnston briefly worked for his father’s business before deciding to pursue a new career.

“I kind of became a second-generation carnival owner by a fluke,” Johnston said.

Johnston originally got a job selling Addressograph machines before working for a mobile car washing and waxing franchise. He ended up returning to the carnival business in 1971 after deciding to purchase a brand-new amusement ride called a Turbo with his father for $69,500. Johnston said the ride was worth more than his father’s entire business.

The Turbo was purchased to operate independently from Johnston’s Amusements, allowing larger carnivals to book it for fairs across the West Coast. Johnston and his wife, Gail, spent the next four years traveling with the Turbo to different fairs in Arizona, Nevada, California, Oregon, Washington and into Canada. Johnston said the experience allowed him to learn more about how good carnivals should operate.

Making his mark

Sam Johnston Sr. died in 1978 after suffering a stroke. After their father’s passing, Johnston and his brother ended up splitting Johnston’s Amusements, each taking a group of rides to create their own small carnivals.

Johnston took his carnival to smaller fairs, festivals and shopping centers on the West Coast. He traveled with his wife and two daughters to the different venues, living in a travel trailer. While growing his carnival business, Johnston also began to explore new business opportunities.

In 1984, Johnston purchased a children’s amusement park named Kiddie Land in Sacramento’s William Land Park. He ended up transforming the park into Funderland Amusement Park, which is still in operation today.

Over time, Johnston would operate two additional children’s amusement parks, Funderwoods in Lodi, California, and Pixieland in Concord, California. Johnston said the key to a successful amusement park is viewing every person walking into the park as though they are coming into your home.

“You have to invite them in and treat them as your guest,” Johnston said.

Johnston’s carnival business, Midway of Fun, continued to expand into a successful 40-ride carnival that operated at more than 65 fairs and festivals annually. Johnston said the business grew to a point where he was unable to control it, so he decided to split his company into two carnivals. He founded California Carnival Co. Inc. in 2001.

He sold Midway of Fun in 2003 and California Carnival Co. Inc. in 2006. Johnston would continue to run Funderland for 15 years after leaving the carnival business. He sold the amusement park in 2021, before leaving California. Johnston and his wife moved to the Upstate to be near their two daughters and eight grandchildren.

Memoir

Sam Johnston released a 404-page memoir, “Ride of a Lifetime: Growing a Family Legacy,” over the summer. The book depicts Johnston’s life in the traveling-carnival business from the 1940s through the early 2000s.

Leadership roles

Sam Johnston held several leadership roles outside of owning and operating successful traveling-carnival businesses and three amusement parks. He served as president of the Showfolks of America, the Showman’s League of America and the Outdoor Amusement Business Association.

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He has worked for the nonprofit organization over the last 33 years at YMCA branches in Tennessee, Kentucky and the Carolinas. Franklin’s first role with the organization was as a summer intern in 1991. He says it was the YMCA’s mission that led him to continue his professional career with the organization.

“The longevity of my career, it’s more like a calling to serve people, to serve the kids and the families and the communities that really need the programs and services that we offer,” Franklin said.

Starting Sept. 28, Franklin will step in as the eighth CEO and president of the YMCA of Greenville. He will fill the role left by longtime CEO Scot Baddley, who announced his retirement in July. Franklin previously worked as the executive vice president and chief operating officer for the YMCA of Greenville.

“(I am) very honored and humbled to be the next CEO,” Franklin said.

Experienced leader

Throughout his professional career, Franklin has held many roles within the YMCA organization, from program director to vice president of operations. He said staff development has always been the root of how the YMCA can impact people within the organization.

“I learned a lot,” Franklin said. “I think for me, every opportunity that I’ve had in the Y, I’ve worked for some really great people, and I’ve been blessed to be able to learn and grow from just great leadership in my time.”

Franklin joined the YMCA of Greenville in 2017. The local organization is the largest Y in the state, annually serving more than 70,000 members and program participants. Franklin felt his knowledge and experience with programming were among the main skills he was able to bring to the YMCA.

During his time as executive vice president and COO, Franklin helped the organization build its services, grow the number of children in sports programming, navigate the COVID-19 pandemic, create a strategic plan, complete successful annual campaigns and build partnerships with other organizations.

As a leader, Franklin strives to serve and coach his staff in a way that acknowledges their personalities and meets their needs. He said it is a proud moment to see people he has supervised rise into higher roles and do great things.

“We get an opportunity every single day to change a life, and I think for me, that’s the true mission of the Y,” Franklin said.

Bright future

As the new CEO and president, Franklin said many opportunities are on the horizon for the YMCA of Greenville. His first goal is to take care of the facilities.

Franklin said the Y is currently working on the Prisma Health Family YMCA expansion project and going through the permitting process with Greenville County. According to the YMCA, phase one construction is expected to begin in the next six months.

The YMCA of Greenville Foundation recently provided funding to add another location and expand programming at the George I. Theisen Family YMCA branch in Travelers Rest. Franklin said potentially relocating the Verdae YMCA, which is too small for the growing population, is also being considered.

“The bottom line is, you know, how do we continue to elevate our programs and memberships at a level that stays consistent with the growth of Greenville County?” he said.

In addition, Franklin and his team are looking at other emerging markets for potential new sites for YMCA branches in Greenville County including Fountain Inn, Greer and Taylors.

“We’re not going to take the foot off the gas,” Franklin said.

Education and past experience

Sam Franklin graduated from Middle Tennessee State University in 1991 with a marketing and public relations degree. He minored in English.

During his professional career, Franklin has worked as:

• Public relations and communications assistant at the YMCA of Middle Tennessee in Nashville, Tennessee
• Program director at a branch in the YMCA of Middle Tennessee in Nashville, Tennessee
• Associate executive at a branch in the YMCA of Greater Louisville in Louisville, Kentucky
• Executive director at a branch in the YMCA of the Triangle in Sanford, North Carolina
• Vice president of operations at a branch in the YMCA of Northwest North Carolina in Winston-Salem, North Carolina
• Executive vice president and chief operating officer at the YMCA of Greenville

Related: Scot Baddley to retire after 20 years leading YMCA of Greenville

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Born and raised in Greenville, Cooper was previously a stay-at-home mom, volunteering at her children’s school and the local church. Everything changed when her husband, David, was diagnosed with a rare health condition and could no longer work.

“We were in a position at one time where we were able to help people. All of a sudden, it was all gone,” Cooper said. “I learned quickly about receiving. People were paying my light bill, helping me with my groceries, doing things.”

To support her family, Cooper came to Furman in search of a job. No full-time positions were available, so she started working in temporary placements at the university, each for eight weeks at a time. She worked in three departments: business and economics, athletics, and the infirmary.

Cooper knew she needed a permanent job and continued to pray that a full-time position would open up. Five months later, she received a call saying the volunteer coordinator position for Furman’s Collegiate Education Service Corps, later known as the Heller Service Corps, was available.

She signed her contract with the university on May 30, 1988. For the next 36 years, Cooper oversaw the university’s largest student organization that focuses on volunteering in the local community.

“I’ve been so blessed and that’s what I want to do for others, to be able to help somebody because I definitely have been there,” Cooper said.

Cooper strives to make a connection with every student she meets, always reminding them to call her ‘Ms. Nancy.’ Sammy Dameske, Heller Service Corps’s student director, explained Cooper’s office is a “hangout spot” for students who want to stop in and visit between classes.

“Ms. Nancy is the type of person that cares about you and puts you above herself no matter what,” Dameske said. “The first time meeting her, it feels like you’ve already been friends with her for years.”

At the end of the 2023-24 school year, Cooper will retire from Furman. She said her last day would be right before graduation in May because she wanted to leave at the same time as the students.

Cooper’s plans after retirement include volunteering and spending time with her family. Her husband passed away in 2008. Their two children, Allison and Kevin, and four grandchildren all live in Greenville County.

Even though her time at Furman is coming to an end, Cooper said she will never truly leave and hopes the students continue to be a light in the local community.

A lasting legacy

Furman University recently honored Nancy Cooper by naming a new endowment fund for the Nancy Cooper Valentine’s Dance for Exceptional Adults. The endowment will help to support Heller Service Corps’s Valentine’s Day dance for adults with special needs. “This one night is the easiest thing we do — the least amount of work with the biggest impact,” Cooper said.

A mother to all

“I call her my work mom. She’s a firecracker and I say that in a good way. She’s passionate about making sure others feel welcome.” — Kristin Irwin, Furman’s director of career education

“Ms. Nancy is like the mom of Furman in … that she’s always there caring for other students.” — Sammy Dameske, Heller Service Corps’s student director

“I would say Ms. Nancy is a mother to all and endlessly caring, supportive, loving and kind — all the beautiful things.” — Madi Ogburn, Furman assistant director of communications and assessment

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Bryant Davis

Davis didn’t heed the call until a few years after graduating from Gardner-Webb University in 2010. His first job after college was in sports marketing at Charleston Southern University.

“I was not very keen on the sales part of it, but I loved the relationship building,” Davis said. “I loved the community aspect in terms of partnering with local agencies, churches and schools.”

He decided to take a job as the assistant director of government and community services for Richland County in 2017. The position allowed Davis to make an impact on his hometown of Columbia. It also opened his eyes to the need for narrowing diversity, equity and inclusion gaps within the community.

“I started focusing a lot more on working to address and understand inequalities that existed in our communities,” Davis said. “I started participating in a lot of facilitator training and DEI training that was offered online and in person to understand.”

Davis was hired as the Greenville’s first chief diversity officer in May 2023. He was excited to be part of building the position from the ground up.

Using the knowledge and skills he learned, Davis strives to help every city employee reach their desired potential. He is driven by the golden rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

“There have been people that had taken the time to pour into me and to ensure my success and I want to, in turn, do the same for others,” Davis said.

He offers coaching to help employees become more aware of their values and skills that can be utilized in the workplace. He also helps build strategic partnerships internally and externally with the community.

“Ultimately, if we are moving towards the organization itself internally thriving, then we can ensure that our communities around us can do the same,” Davis said.

Outside of work, Davis raises his three children with his wife, Megan. He currently commutes to Greenville for his job, however, his family plans to officially move to the area in a few months.

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It wouldn’t be a surprise. She has spent decades working in the same building, since she was 16 years old.

Shand, 88, grew up along Augusta Road and attended Greenville High School. In 1951, she applied for a part-time job at Meyers-Arnold Department Store — the previous storefront at 111 N. Main St.

Most of her afternoons and weekends were spent working across the store’s wide variety of departments. Her favorite tasks were assisting customers in the sportswear and clothing departments.

“You helped people more back then,” Shand said. “That customer service … I liked that part.”

She earned 60 cents an hour, which was enough money for her to buy the things she wanted as a teenager.

“I could go to the movies,” Shand said. “I would buy 1 yard of material and mother would make a skirt for me.”

Shand continued working at Meyers-Arnold for the remainder of her time in high school and throughout her year studying at Furman University. She began working full-time at the department store the summer after her freshman year of college.

“I decided I wanted a career instead of college,” Shand said. “I started in the office immediately and I went to comptometer school.”

(A comptometer is a type of mechanical calculator.)

Her love for mathematics grew as she became a sales auditor for Meyers-Arnold. Shand jokes that when she started out, she didn’t even know what the word computer was.

“I did sales daily, week-to-date, month-to-date — all by hand,” Shand said. “I loved it because it had to balance. Anything that has to balance I love.”

Shand advanced from the sales team to management, later becoming the department store’s accounts payable manager. She continued working at Meyers-Arnold when the department store relocated from downtown to McAlister Square in 1968.

After 25 years with the company, Shand decided to take a new step in her career and started working for Belk department store in 1977. She spent another 25 years as the store’s accounts payable manager and later as the office and operations manager.

Shand retired in 2002. It only lasted a few months.

“I did not like retirement at all,” Shand said. “I couldn’t see me just washing windows, sweeping floors all the time.”

It was an easy decision for her to take a new job offer at Mast General Store in 2003. The store coincidently moved into the old Meyers-Arnold building downtown. The job was a golden opportunity, she said.

Shand was in charge of the store’s deposit for 16 years and walked to Wells Fargo every day to drop off the money. She later transitioned to working the cash register and assisting with customers.

“I really love people,” Shand said. “We have so many out-of-town people. You’d be surprised. I would say probably half of our customers are often (from) out of town and they love Greenville.”

Walking through the store now, Shand can still picture what the building once looked like when she was a teenager. She points out little details that have changed or remained over the years. One thing that hasn’t changed, however, is the feeling that all the employees are part of a family, Shand said.

“(Meyers-Arnold) was a big family and I kept friends for years and of course, I was such a kid when I was there,” Shand said. “I’m so glad Mast (General) is the same.”

Family first

Mary Alice Shand had two children, Ann and Rusty, with her first husband, Eugene Hayes. She married her second husband, Robert Shand, in 1983. Today, she has four grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. She also is the mother to three cats named Miss Priss, Patches and Scooter.

A teacher at heart

Growing up, Shand wanted to become a schoolteacher. Her mother taught first grade and she loved how education is a dedicated field.

“After I started working (at Meyers-Arnold), I just loved it and changed my mind,” Shand said. “I taught Sunday school, so I got to teach a little bit.”

Retail history

Meyers-Arnold Department Store was a family-owned retail enterprise that opened in 1903 at 111 N. Main St. It included a variety of departments including gloves and scarves, cosmetics, jewelry, handbags, fine china, housewares, fashion, and shoes. The department store was a staple in downtown Greenville for decades until it moved to McAlister Square in 1968. It was eventually bought out by Upton’s, a chain that closed in 1999. Mast General Store opened in downtown Greenville in 2003 in the former Meyers-Arnold spot on Main Street.

Making change

Meyers-Arnold Department Store used an intricate tube system that would send cash from the retail departments to the sales floor.

“That’s how we made change,” Shand said. “It was in little containers. They would put the money and the little ticket in it. Then we would send the change back to their register.”

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“My career — it’s been great,” Thompson said. “I wouldn’t have changed a thing. Luckily, I was at the right place at the right time to get some (of the) opportunities that I got.”

Thompson first put on a police badge while volunteering as a reserve officer for the Mauldin Police Department in 1993. During that time, he was also a manager at McDonald’s, where he had worked for nine years throughout high school and college.

“McDonald’s taught me a lot,” Thompson said. “That customer service, customer interaction — you wouldn’t believe how much that helps you when you are a police officer. You would think it’s two totally separate things, but it really goes hand in hand.”

Volunteering as a reserve officer and working with fully certified officers helped open Thompson’s eyes to the career he wanted to pursue.

“If you think about, working somewhere and earning your wage, and then you can’t wait to get off of work — your paid job — to go volunteer. That was me,” Thompson said. “I couldn’t wait to go home, take a shower, put on a uniform, and get in a police car and be a police officer.”

Thompson became a full-time police officer for Mauldin in 1994 after spending a year volunteering at the police department. He joined the Greenville Police Department in 1997.

“Mauldin was (a) very small, very easy going town. It was a great place to start because you could learn and it wasn’t fast paced,” Thompson said. “I got my feet wet down there and then came up (to Greenville) and really got to do a lot.”

The Greenville Police Department offered Thompson many opportunities to serve within the department’s various special units. Over the years, he served as a:

• Field-training officer
• Vice and narcotics detective
• SWAT team commander
• Lieutenant of special operations/vice and narcotics
• Lieutenant over uniform patrol
• Captain of the support division
• Captain of the operations division
• Captain of investigations division
• Deputy police chief

After climbing the ranks, Thompson was selected to be the chief of police in 2020.

“I always said, ‘I wish I was in that position. What is so hard about making the right decision? We need to do this,’ and I was so glad to get the opportunity,” Thompson said.

His main goals as police chief were to strengthen community relationships and establish transparency between the police department and Greenville residents.

“Transparency is huge,” Thompson said. “People nowadays want to know more about what’s going on inside the police department (more) than ever. They want to deep dive into the statistics, the data — they want to see it. So we’ve really tried to improve that.”

For the past three years, Thompson has led the Greenville Police Department through a worldwide pandemic and a time when public mistrust of police was at an all-time high.

Despite these unique circumstances, the city’s police department reported an almost 20% decrease in violent crimes in 2022. Thompson credits this decline to the work and dedication of the city’s police officers.

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“It was a great teamwork,” Thompson said. “We were successful because of the great teamwork of the police department and (the) fellow agencies that (worked) side by side with us too.”

He says working with the men and women who serve within the GPD has been his favorite part of the job.

“Obviously, I wouldn’t be in this position if it wasn’t for all of them and their hard work,” Thompson said. “I’m really proud of them and I could not say enough good things about them.”

Thompson said he decided it was time to retire because both he and the police department are in “a good place.” He hopes to see the GPD and its various units continue to grow to coincide with the city’s growth.

“I think it should be an easy transition to get somebody here,” Thompson said. “Crime is low. (There is) good teamwork with other agencies. I’ve done my time and now (the department is) ready for somebody else to come in and continue leading it.”

The city of Greenville uploaded a job posting online for the Greenville Police chief position on June 5.

Fast facts

• Thompson moved to Upstate South Carolina, specifically Mauldin, 43 years ago.
• He graduated from Mauldin High School in 1986.
• Thompson received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of South Carolina in 1990.
• He graduated from the FBI National Academy in 2014.
• Thompson received a master’s in criminal justice from Anderson University in 2019.
• He graduated from the Police Executive Research Forum’s Senior Management Institute for Police.

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“There was something about it I just loved,” she said. “I went back home and told my parents I wanted to move to the United States, and they looked at me and said, ‘What?’”

Originally from Barranquilla, Colombia, Eljach was studying to be a lawyer and had completed a year when she moved to Greenville in 2000.

“I was 19 years old, and of course that’s the age when I thought the world was mine — I could do anything,” she said.

Moving to a new country, however, was not only a culture shock but a wake-up call into adulthood. 

“Suddenly I had to get up early, go to work, pay for groceries and bills, and I kept thinking ‘Why did I do this?” she said.

While she worked to get her feet underneath her, Eljach went through multiple job positions including packaging, factory work, retail and even a day care. And in 2000, she wanted to attend Greenville Tech.

“I remember applying and I realized I had nothing I needed,” she said. “I didn’t even know what a green card was.”

By 2003, she found a job as an office assistant and spent her days answering the phone, connecting with customers and placing orders. That’s when she believes her career really started. Through this position, she learned to speak English better, learned how to describe all the products to customers and went from receptionist to general manager. Throughout her multiple years there, she learned payroll, account management and more, learning as many facets of business as she could. 

In 2015, Eljach knew she wanted to get back to her roots by working with the growing Hispanic community in Greenville.

“I didn’t feel like I had a publication to inform, entertain and connect me to other Latinos in the Upstate, so I decided I would make one.”

InSouth magazine was born to connect cultures and became the first bilingual publication in the Upstate.

“As an immigrant, it’s hard to start from zero,” Eljach said. “My heart is to help people who were like me at 19 years old who are starting with nothing. I know how that feels, and I want to help.” 

Ultimately, Eljach’s passion lies in supporting people who walk in the shoes she used to fill.

“When you move to a new country and there’s a language barrier, simple things become so difficult. That’s why InSouth is so important to me: I’m finally giving people resources like what I needed when I first moved here.”

“I’m helping people learn what I didn’t know either,” she added. “That’s making a difference in my community.”

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“We moved right before I turned 8, so I’ve been in South Carolina 24 years at this point,” she said.

Her heart to serve led Muñoz to venture into law enforcement.

“My dad was an officer in Colombia,” she said, “and ever since I can remember, I wanted to be a police officer.”

She’s served with the GPD for the last nine years and has recently become the force’s first Latina sergeant. 

In her career, she sees a lot of improvements and a lot of room for growth.

“Hispanics don’t trust the police, and from my perspective, it’s very understandable,” she said.

Part of her focus in the new position is to make people feel safe to call the police when needed. One way she accomplishes this is by speaking Spanish to them almost immediately.

“I speak to them in Spanish, and as soon as they hear me, they feel a lot more at ease and more comfortable telling me what the problem is,” Muñoz said.

Gaining trust is essential for the GPD to establish healthy relationships, she added.

“I don’t want a language barrier to exist when trying to communicate with law enforcement. I want them to trust us.”

Muñoz said it’s important for her to honor her Hispanic heritage in both her professional and personal lives, including sharing her heritage with her family: wife Ashley and son Landon.

“Being Hispanic is something to be proud of,” she said, “and I want my son to experience that.” 

Muñoz’s joy is helping people in her community and building up the next generation by showing them anything is possible.

“I definitely feel so proud,” Muñoz said. “It’s so amazing I’m the first Hispanic in this role, and for that, I’m very proud of myself.”

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