Written by: Gregg Bartlett of Hersam Acorn Newspapers at 13:24
It’s not Kris or Nick. Who knew, but Santa has long forsaken the North Pole for bucolic, suburban Redding, and that friends and family simply call him Tom?
For Thomas S. Santa, a 26-year Redding resident, getting mixed up with the famous white-bearded-in-red guy scheduled to make his Christmas Eve rounds this weekend is nothing new. You might say this probably is an expected cosmic anomaly, an unwritten “Claus” that’s steeped in energetic family history.
The case of mistaken identity merriment started for Redding’s Mr. Santa a few years ago when out of the blue he received a phone call from a youngster wanting to talk to you know who. The grandson of the founder and now the chief executive officer of Santa Energy in Bridgeport, a major energy supplier serving New England for 70 years, Mr. Santa said he happily took the call from the boy.
“He had dialed our number, 800-93-SANTA, hoping to reach a certain jolly old elf residing at the North Pole, but he got me instead,” Mr. Santa recalled in a recent company statement sent to The Pilot. He helped the youngster with his request.
“This boy was not the only one,” said Mr. Santa. “Every year Santa Energy receives some letters and phone calls from similar children trying to reach Santa Claus.”
In this second holiday season of his company’s Letters from Santa program, children have been encouraged to send their merry missives, and Santa Energy has promised the children will get a letter back.
“So far this year, Santa Energy has received approximately 50 letters to Santa,” Mr. Santa noted in an interview by e-mail. “Almost every town in Fairfield County is represented, but so are places that Santa Energy does not serve — such as California. We get letters for kids only one or two years old (written by parents or grandparents) as well as teenagers and adults looking to reconnect with something magical from their childhood.”
What do children say in their letters to Santa?
“Most of the letters we receive are simple ‘I’ve been good and I would like…’ letters,” Mr. Santa pointed out.
“However, some are very emotional pleas for help, hope and strength. A few mentioned surgery or other physical challenges a child has recently experienced or is facing. Some mentioned the impact of broken homes. One even mentioned the death of a child. While the stories are sometimes sad, it appears that the letters they write are often therapeutic and that the letter Santa sends in response can really make a difference in their lives.”
It appears the company’s founder and its employees have received a good deal of seasonal joy from the letters. Last year, some of Santa Energy’s employees suggested they formalize the program for these children, the company said in a press release. The program was promoted locally and the company received hundreds of letters. It was so popular with children and Santa Energy employees that the program was continued this year.
Said Mr. Santa, “As a local, family-owned company, we try to do a lot of things for the community, but this program is something special. Despite it being a very busy time of year for the fuel business and in our personal lives, our employees work extra hard to support the Letters from Santa program. They understand that this program is about the children and helping create the magic of the holidays for them. All of us at Santa Energy are glad that we are able to do this.”
“‘You can believe in Santa’ has been our slogan for our company for many years,” said Mr. Santa. “And while it is a great slogan for our business to use all year long, we are happy to have it take on extra special meaning at this time of year.”
(Mr. Santa, also a captain of industry in the state, was named last week to a vice chair post with the Connecticut Business & Industry Association. The Pilot will have more on this in an upcoming issue.)
Is the Santa fable still alive and does the magic still evoke a sense of wonder these days?
“The letters from the younger kids show how important Santa is to them,” Mr. Santa said. “They tell Santa that they love him and sometimes include a special message or artwork they created for him. You can almost envision the magical expressions on their faces as they were writing it.”
And not just children write letters to Santa Energy.
“Maybe more surprisingly is that many adults seem to look to Santa for hope and maybe as a way to reconnect to simpler and happier times,” Mr. Santa noted. “Whatever the reason for the letter coming to us, we are glad that the letters from Santa can bring them something they need.”
When the Pilot finally connected with Mr. Santa by phone earlier this week and acknowledged that this must be his busiest time of year, he responded with a hearty laugh and mentioned that he had been away.
To the North Pole for last minute naughty or nice list checking and toy inventory?
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