A Pharmacy To Serve Our Community
The reason for Lake Murray Drug Co’s existence is simple: big chain pharmacies don’t actually care about their customer’s health, they care about profits. Justin Carter, one of Lake Murray Drug Co’s founders and owners, found this out first hand working as a pharmacist for one of the better known national brands. Despite his best efforts, the corporate environment actively limited his ability to help people in need.
The solution was clear: build a better pharmacy. A better pharmacy means more, and better trained, staff. A better pharmacy means longer hours to allow working families to pick up their prescription drugs. A better pharmacy means flexible options like delivery and pill blister packaging. A better pharmacy means offering compounded medications.
Lake Murray Drug Company embodies all of these changes and more, and it is our goal to benefit our community first and foremost. When you call us, we’ll pick up the phone. When you’ve had a bad day and need a compassionate ear, we’re here to listen. When you’re in a rush and need to grab your prescription as you run to pick up the kids from soccer practice, we’ll be ready.
If you want to be treated like a neighbor instead of like a number on a profit statement, then we think you’ll enjoy what you find when you walk into one of our locations.
We have locations in Irmo and Chapin and offer delivery within a 5 mile radius of each. We provide walk-in immunizations, accept Medicare, Medicaid, and most insurances, and offer compounding pharmacy services.
Our Team
We are a locally-owned community pharmacy dedicated to providing personalized service at an affordable price. Lake Murray Drug Company is proud to be your source for all of your pharmaceutical needs. We offer a wide variety of services including conventional prescription filling, blister packaging, immunizations, prescription delivery and much more. At Lake Murray Drug Company, you can count on personal attention provided by our caring, professional staff. Our expertly trained pharmacists and friendly staff pride themselves on making sure your pharmacy experience exceeds expectations. Visit us today to experience the Lake Murray Drug Company difference.
Justin Carter, PharmD
Justin Carter is our pharmacist in charge and has been in pharmacy half of his life. He worked as a technician starting in 2000 and graduated pharmacy school in 2008. Justin’s experience has taken him through many practice sites and none have satisfied quite like independent pharmacy and the family aspect that it supports. He is passionate about patient care and longs to know each patient on a personal level to build trust and aid in an individualized pharmaceutical approach.
Justin has been married to Shannon, our office manager and technician, for 12 years. They met while working together at a local independent pharmacy and are excited to bring their story full circle. Justin and Shannon have three children, Derrick, Jenny Kate, and Ryan. They are also registered foster parents, and at times have up to two additional children. They are active members of Chapin United Methodist Church and co-founders of Hope for BraveHEARTS, a non-profit that raises money for Congenital Heart Defect research. They helped to start HBH after their oldest son, Derrick, was born with multiple heart defects.
Shannon Carter, CPhT
Shannon began working in pharmacy as a teenager and continued for nine years, until becoming an elementary school teacher. After having children, she chose to stay home full time and began homeschooling them. She is excited to renew her technician license and get back into a pharmacy where she can have the flexibility to work and continue to homeschool.
Will Rodgers, CPhT
Will began his pharmacy career as a teen and has been in pharmacy for 19 years. He graduated from Chapin High School and is also a graduate of University of South Carolina. During his 19 years in pharmacy, Will has worked in multiple pharmacy settings and has found that independent pharmacy and being apart of a local community is the most rewarding.
Will is a lifelong member of Mt. Horeb Lutheran Church, the oldest church in Chapin. He is active in both his church and the community. He is an avid tennis player and has a passion for children and the elderly. In 2022, Will married Whitney in a beautiful ceremony in the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Billy Mai, PharmD
Billy has been working in the field of pharmacy since 2013, before and while he was pursuing his studies at the University of South Carolina College of Pharmacy. Graduating with his PharmD in 2021, Billy had the opportunity to become a pharmacist at Lake Murray Drug Company. He loves being able to build relationships while serving his community and ensure each and every patient feels welcomed at LMDC.
Outside of pharmacy, Billy enjoys spending time with his family, rubbing his cats bellies, listening to music and gaming.
Whitney Rodgers, PharmD
Whitney is a Irmo native and graduated from Ben Lippen High School in 2008. She knew she was interested in Pharmacy when her 11th grade chemistry teacher hinted in might be something she would enjoy. After shadowing a pharmacist her mind was made up and Whitney graduated from South University in 2014. During her 9 years as a pharmacist Whitney has worked in several pharmacy settings but is thrilled to be a part of the Lake Murray Drug team where she can really give that personal service.
Out side of Pharmacy Whitney is an avid runner having completed several marathons. You also will not find a more passionate person about anything Disney! Run Disney is one of her favorite running events to participate in. In 2022 Whitney married Will in a beautiful ceremony in the Blue Ridge Mountains.
Wendy Oaks Grooms, RPh
Wendy has been a pharmacist in the Irmo area for about 30 years. She has worked in big chain retail for the majority of her pharmacy career but has always made sure she had time for every patient. She is so excited to be working in a pharmacy that is centered around her patients!
Wendy moved from upstate New York to South Carolina in 1985. She graduated from the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston in 1989 and has made customer service her priority ever since. If she is not working in pharmacy, she can be found working in her yard. She became a Master Gardener in 2011 and enjoys experimenting with different flowers and plants. It is a good thing she likes working in her yard because that is where she met her husband, Melvin. You never know who you will find in your back yard!
Kristin Allison, CPhT
Kristin started her career in pharmacy in 2009 after attending Midlands Technical College where she received her Associates in Pharmacy. She has worked in several different pharmacy settings before coming to Lake Murray Drug. She has a passion for getting to know her patients to the fullest to provide the best care and customer service there is to offer!
Kristin was born and raised in Columbia, SC. She has a wonderful husband and have a beautiful son, Andrew. They are members of Grace United Methodist Church and have a great church family they love. Kristin enjoys spending time with friends and family and crafting.
Michelle Greer, CPhT
Michelle has been in the Columbia area and involved in the pharmacy business for nearly 30 years. She specializes as a compounding technician and is meticulous about her work. She has a passion for independent pharmacy and the personal care they offer their customers. She and her husband, Andy, are active members at Calvary Chapel Irmo. Michelle has two daughters, Ashley and Britni, both grown and married, along with three grandchildren. In her free time, Michelle loves being in the company of close friends and family and the joy they bring her.
Andrew Frick, Pharmacy Technician
Andrew enjoys concerts, outdoor activities, cooking, listening to music, and playing guitar. He is a jack of all trades, including but not limited to pharmacy technician and scooter fleet rental manager. He loves working at LMDC because it allows him to interact with customers and make sure they are taken care of. Andrew is a dog-dad to Chloe and fiancé to Brittany.
Emma Wicker, Clerk
Emma graduated from Mid-Carolina High School in 2022 and is excited to start her next chapter as one of the Newberry College Wolves. She has been working at LMDC since April of 2021 as a cashier. Emma enjoys working and providing service within the community. Emma is an active member at Mt. Tabor Lutheran Church in Little Mountain where she participates in their youth program. Along with this she loves playing softball and tennis. In her free time you can find her at a softball field, playing with her dog, Harley, or hanging out with family and friends.
Rosie
Meet Rosie!
Rosie has been A HUGE HELP in counting pills and labeling bottles so we can help where it matters MOST, OUR SERVICE TO YOU! Rosie has allowed us to connect, personalize, and spend more time where it matters and that is with OUR PEOPLE!
Why Choose Lake Murray Drug?
Convenience
- Between work, school, and life, it can feel impossible to make it to the pharmacy before it closes; that’s why our locations are open weekdays until 7pm and Saturdays until 2pm!
- We keep the most common vaccines in stock and welcome walk-ins.
Experience
- Our pharmacy staff have over 125 years of combined experience.
- We stay on top of the latest health news to better serve our community.
- Our locations are staffed by knowledgeable pharmacists and pharmacy technicians, which means you’ll always be able to talk to someone who cares about your healthcare and wellness needs.
Solutions Tailored For You & Your Family
- We are a compounding pharmacy! We offer custom dosages for hormone replacement, hard-to-find medications, flavored medicine, preservative & dye free, sugar-free & ketogenic, and even options for pets!
- We package medication! Stop juggling a dozen bottles and move to our Dispill packaging.
People Come First
- We are here to serve you - however that looks for you! Need someone to talk to? We’re here to listen. Need to grab your medicine and run? We’ll be ready so you can be on your way!
- Insurance is complicated - but treating people with respect and dignity isn’t. We’re happy to discuss your options with you and see how we can best fill your prescriptions.
- For every vaccination administered we donate $3 to Sharing God’s Love (Irmo) or WeCare (Chapin), charitable organizations which help struggling local families get food, clothing, pay for utility bills, and more.
Service With a Smile
When you’re used to overworked, understaffed pharmacies it's easy to come in with low expectations. We don’t see why it has to be that way, and that’s why we run our stores differently. See what folks say about filling prescriptions with us:
People Come First
At Lake Murray Drug Co our first priority is serving our local community. To accomplish this, you’ll notice that we have more staff than you might be used to at the national pharmacy chains, and this is just the first step towards providing you with a better experience.
We go further by providing services you might not have even known that pharmacies could offer, like pill packaging, compounding, pet medicines, smiling employees, and delivery. Lake Murray Drug Co offers small-town charm plus modern pharmacy services. Come in and experience the difference.