First Community Bank of South Carolina

Last week, we had the wonderful opportunity to attend the Columbia International University Leadership Summit. At the summit, we were able to listen to Jon Gordon speak about the different intricacies of leadership and have him give us insightful information on how to become better leaders ourselves. Jon Gordon is one of the top 3 leadership best-selling authors and speakers in the world. We found him quite inspirational, and we are grateful for the wealth of knowledge he was able to give us.

It was a great opportunity for us to attend the Carolinas Bank Directors and Executives Summit that the South Carolina Bankers Association hosted this year. This was a joint conference with the NC Bankers Association and was the first time it has ever been a joint meeting. At the event, we were able to hear from many great speakers within our industry. Some of the topics that were discussed were those such as new and exciting banking industry info around AI, leadership transitions, how board members and c suite executives can work together collaboratively to achieve bank goals, and much more. We even got to hear from examiners and a Federal Reserve Bank economist. With so much newfound knowledge from this conference, we are really looking forward to the next one! Featured left to right: Vaughan Dozier, Chief Commercial and Retail Banking Officer; Jan Hollar, Former Myrtle Beach Chamber of Commerce CEO and current FCB Board of Directors Member; Drew Painter, Chief Commercial and Retail Banking Officer

We would like to formally congratulate our Mortgage team on their recent accomplished feats. This year, Rus Horton, Daniel Amick, and Charlie Branham all received awards at the annual Building Industry Association of Central South Carolina's Regal Awards Ceremony. Daniel received an award for closing over $6MM in construction loans for 2024 and another award for a loan average of $500,000 per loan. Rus and Charlie both received an award for closing over $5MM in construction loans for 2024. Please join us in congratulating them on their great achievements! Left to right 1st photo: Alex Huggins, Charlie Branham, Danyelle Hall, Daniel Amick, and Rus Horton

We are proud to recognize Kristopher Whitley of our Lexington Office on receiving the Rotarian of the Year Award from the Lexington Rotary Club. The Rotarian of the Year Award is given to individuals who have demonstrated excellence in their professional endeavors and have made significant contributions to their community. Kris is an exemplary individual, and we are glad to have him on our team.

Today, we were honored to host The Stock Market Game workshop for teachers put on by SC Economics. This no-cost workshop provides hands-on, real world, ready-to-implement strategies for teaching students all about investing. During the event, our own Vaughan Dozier and Allen Hancock had the opportunity to speak to the teachers as well. We are so grateful for everything SC Economics does for our teachers and students alike, and we are proud to partner with them.

Last week we celebrated our annual FCFC Bull Award party in the Upstate. Daniel Felder created the inaugural Bull Award during the pandemic when he saw that our team members could really use a pick me up. Annually, the Upstate bankers gather for a celebration of teamwork to honor our great partnership, and the Bull Award is presented to the Most Valuable Referral Partner (MVRP). Nic Skey presented Will Cheatham with the 2024 Bull Award, and we are happy that the Upstate group had a fun night of teambuilding and bonding over their successes. Oh, and we really like Allen’s bobblehead of himself 🤣!

Each year we have our annual United Way campaign in August. For this campaign, we all come together as a company to raise funds for the United Way. We had a very successful campaign this year, and we would like to thank our partners for their contributions.

We are so very proud and happy to celebrate Latonyia West's promotion that she received earlier this week. Latonyia not only has a full-time job working out of our Irmo office, but she also serves her country in the United States Army Reserve. It was an honor to be present to watch her be promoted from Master Sergeant to Command Sergeant Major. Achieving this rank was no easy feat, and it took a tremendous amount of work, discipline, dedication, and time on her part. Latonyia, it is an honor for all of us to be able to work alongside you, and we thank you for your service. 1st photo: COL Jabar Marks & CSM Latonyia West 2nd photo: CSM Latonyia West & Ryan West, Ret. Active Guard Reserve 3rd photo: CSM Latonyia West & Kenya Jones 4th photo: COL Jabar Marks, CSM Latonyia West, & Ryan West, Ret. Active Guard Reserve 5th photo: COL Jabar Marks, CSM Latonyia West, & Kenya Jones

We would like to congratulate Nick Layman on successfully finishing and graduating from the South Carolina Bankers School at the South Carolina Bankers Association! Graduating from SC Bankers School takes 3 years of a rigorous course load while also maintaining your day-to-day job at your perspective financial institute. We are very proud of Nick and grateful to have him on our team. Left to right: Kyle Roberts, MBA, Shawn Jordan, Nick Layman, Sarah Donley, Ted Nissen, and Elizabeth Middleton

Last week, our summer Interns officially graduated the Capture Columbia Program! We are proud of all of you and grateful to have had such a bright minded group of individuals working in our offices this year. Thank you Columbia Opportunity Resource | COR for this wonderful program! Left to right: Sofia Rivera; Riley Moore; Zoe Cooke; Mike Crapps, FCCO President & CEO; Alison Bohlin; Rachel McCrary; and Preston Bray