Cashier Joyce Staton recently retired from Greenville Utilities after assisting our customers with paying their bills since 1998.

Joyce collected and processed bill payments both in person and through the mail. What many employees and customers may not know is that Joyce also took care of holiday weekend mail payments. "Anytime our offices are closed for a holiday, we're extra busy the day after we open back up," she said. To help lighten the load a little for the cashiers on their first day back from a holiday, Joyce would come into the office on many of those weekends. She would first stop by the post office to pick up the mail, and then bring it in and sort out all of the payments so they were ready to be processed as soon as GUC was open for business.

Throughout her time at GUC, Joyce got to know a lot of our customers. "I've enjoyed working with the public, and honestly, many of our customers became like family to me," she said. "I'll not only miss my coworkers, but our customers as well."

Joyce said she'll still stay busy in retirement. "I have more time for working in my flower garden and kitchen, and more time for puzzles and family," she said. Joyce and her husband, Jesse (who retired from Greenville Utilities 17 years ago) have a large family: children Lisa, Jamie, and Melinda; grandchildren Shykeem, Micaiah, Kayla, Zoe, Moriah, and Gabby; and great-grandson Graysen. Most of her family (including her mother, three sisters, and five brothers) live in the area or within a few hours of here, so Joyce also looks forward to more family dinners and get-togethers. In fact, she's already been surprising her out-of-town siblings with visits.

Enjoy your retirement, Joyce. We'll miss you!