COLUMBIA, S.C. — The man who brought Christmas magic to hundreds of kids in the Midlands for many years has passed away.
Family and friends of Fred "Santa" McCurdy remember his legacy as a man who loved his community and loved spreading Christmas cheer.
“He truly had the softest, kindest, passion for everybody that he met,” Erin Branham, McCurdy's daughter, said.
Many just knew him as Santa, but he was also a Richland County paramedic and the Lexington County Deputy Coroner from 1998-2005.
“We would be in restaurants outside of Christmas season and all the kids would be staring at him thinking that he looked like Santa even though he wasn’t really in the Santa attire and he would always welcome them and talk to them and let them know that he’s always watching and to behave for your mom and dad. Anytime anyone is in need, the talks that he had and the conversations were always from his heart,” Branham said.
McCurdy passed away Tuesday at the age of 76 from health issues.
For over 20 years, McCurdy was known as Columbia's Santa.
He loved listening to children’s wishes at Woodhill Mall, right across from WLTX where the Target is located and he appeared as the star of the show in the Columbia and Lexington Christmas parades.
“He loved just seeing the children smiles and telling their stories and what they wanted,” Branham said.
Before becoming Santa, McCurdy also helped identify victims of the 9/11 attacks through his work with the Disaster Mortuary Operational Response Team.
He was also given the The Order of The Palmetto in 1993 by former Gov. Carroll Campbell and the key to the city of Columbia by former Mayor Robert Coble.
“He was one of the best 911 dispatchers I've ever known. He knew Columbia like the back of his hand. back in those days we had map books, not digital or GPS. Fred could open could open that map book and tell you a grid for a street and he knew exactly where to send that ambulance and how long it would take for that ambulance to get there,” Lori Scionti, friend and former EMT co-worker, said.
RELATED: A beloved Christmas icon passes away
Friends, family and mentees say McCurdy lit up every room he was in. From his wit to his compassion for others, his legacy will live on forever say friends.
“People in Columbia are going to know him as "Santa Fred", but he also was a father, a husband a brother an uncle, a mentor and friend and that’s what I'm going to remember. I think that’s what we all remember. He was Columbia's Santa Claus and a friend to everyone. that was his legacy and that’s a wonderful legacy," Scionti said.
The McCurdy family says Fred designated the non-profit Happy Wheels to receive his memorial donations as his final act of giving back to the community.
The donations will help supply books and toys to children in the three children’s hospitals in South Carolina.