LADY LAKE, Florida (WESH) -- A legion of "Layaway Santas" are popping up across the country and paying down the balances of customers who put Christmas items on layaway.

One such Santa landed his sleigh at a Walmart in Florida Saturday.

His name is Greg Parady and he was in a Lady Lake Walmart shopping for a charity event, when he overheard someone talking about how tough it is to make payments on layaway items. That's when his heart and the spirit of the season took over.

"Everybody cried at one point or another because it was just, it was just amazing, and his wife and son were here, and it was like a family and you could tell he really cared," said Deb Davis, Walmart employee.

Parady, a financial planner, paid $20,000 to pay down the accounts of 76 customers -- everyone with balances on accounts of $200 or more.

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