David Farris traces his success to the supportive atmosphere of the Chagrin Falls School System. Much involved in athletics and drama during his years at CFHS, his successes have reached dramatic proportions. Since 1987, he has been Chief Operating Officer of Beneficial Corporation, a $15 billion, New York Stock Exchange-listed financial services holding company. He is also President and Chief Executive Officer of Beneficial Management Corporation, a subsidiary. Subsidiaries of the company provide financial services through their various consumer-finance, banking, and insurance operations located throughout the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany and Ireland. A graduate of the Advanced Management Program of the Harvard Graduate School of Business, he is a director and past president of the National Home Equity Mortgage Association. He is a chairman of the New Jersey Ballet Company, and also chairman and a trustee of CHEMcare, a Westfield, N.J. support group for cancer patients undergoing radiation and chemotherapy treatment. After being graduated from CFHS, David stayed close to home for a while. He earned his undergraduate degree in business from Kent State University, and he was president of the Chagrin Valley Jaycees. He is currently a member of the board of directors of Kent State University Foundation.