July 25, 2024 • 27 mins
Ever wondered what Santa Claus does when he's not busy delivering gifts? Join us for an enchanting journey as we celebrate Christmas in July with the legendary Santa himself! Discover the fascinating origins of this unique mid-year festivity, and learn how it has grown from a 1933 summer camp tradition into a beloved celebration. Santa opens up about his off-season activities, including his heartfelt work with nonprofits like Secret Sleigh, which are dedicated to bringing joy to children battling serious illnesses. Peek behind the scenes at the North Pole, where reindeer training and crop planting for reindeer feed happen all year round. This episode is a warm reminder of the importance of volunteering and supporting charitable causes long after the holiday season has passed.
If you’d like to schedule some time to talk to Santa, check out https://talktosanta.com/
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
perspective.
Perspective is spelled p e r s,p e c t, I, v e perspective,
the 30 000 foot view perspectiveput on someone else's shoes.
Perspective can also refer tothe state of existing in space
(00:20):
or one's view of the world.
Perspective rea audio space, orone's view of the world
Perspective.
Speaker 2 (00:26):
REA Audio Reemployability.
Have you started your holidayshopping yet?
Now, if you didn't realize it,the day this podcast posts will
be exactly five months until theChristmas and holiday seasons.
You're going to be singingChristmas carols and stringing
up lights before you know it.
Now, when I was a kid,celebrating Christmas in July
seemed like it was a bigger dealthan it is now.
(00:46):
It's a great marketingopportunity and I'm sure you're
gonna see some furniture salesgoing on this week.
But, believe it or not,celebrating Christmas in July
actually had some more innocentroots.
According to Southern LivingMagazine, Christmas in July was
first celebrated at a girls'summer camp in 1933.
The Keystone Camp in Brevard,North Carolina, decided to
(01:07):
dedicate two days, July 24th and25th, to the Christmas holiday,
complete with cotton, fake snow, a decked-out tree, a gift
exchange and, of course, Santa.
A few years later, in 1940, themovie Christmas in July opened
in theaters and the concept hitpop culture.
By the 1950s, retailers hadembraced the idea, and the rest
(01:29):
is history.
So since we're a mere 153 daysfrom Christmas, I hoped to get
you into the spirit a littleearly.
This year, we reached out tothe only person that really made
sense for this episode'sinterview.
You guessed it, it's SantaClaus himself.
Speaker 1 (01:46):
Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, lives
in the North Pole.
Every year, he brings gifts towell-behaved children on the
night before Christmas.
Speaker 3 (01:54):
Well, anytime that I get a chance to chat with
someone about how's it going uphere and what could people be
doing at this time of year, aswe're getting ready for
Christmas, those are importantthings to me, and any chance I
have to connect with specialpeople and I certainly, as I
said, I've been watching you fora lot of years.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
Way more years than I want to admit.
You know that right.
Speaker 3 (02:20):
Well, in my world, when you're 1,700 years, you're
pretty much a young'un to me.
Speaker 2 (02:26):
Well, that's nice of you to say.
I appreciate that REA workswith nonprofits all over the
country and we always see anuptick in not only need during
the holiday season but also likea willingness for people to
want to volunteer, and we wantedto take this Christmas in July
opportunity to kind of remindpeople that volunteering is
needed all year round, as wellas financial support to
(02:51):
non-profits.
So, santa, are there anyfavorite non-profits that the
elves or you or Mrs Claus liketo participate in?
Speaker 3 (02:54):
during the off season .
I'll just tell you right upfront, there's an organization
called Secret Sleigh wherethere's an arrangement for a
center to go and visit with achild that maybe can't get out
of their home.
It's quite an honor to do that.
It's very nice to connect withthem.
I remember one this year wherethe dear mother said to me well,
(03:15):
santa, she's playing possum.
Today she's not being veryresponsive, but I can tell you,
santa, she knows you're here, Ican monitor, I can watch her
heart monitor and her heart isgoing wild.
So I kind of believe in thatkind of stuff.
I can also tell you that whenI'm actually traveling
(03:36):
throughout the world, of courseI do that frequently and I have
places around the world.
In Arizona I have a place wherethe simple vehicle that I'm
driving it's my transformedsleigh, but it's a simple car.
The license plate simply saysHigh Santa, but beneath that
High Santa is the backgroundhere in Arizona that I found and
(04:01):
I choose.
It says curing childhood cancer.
That I found and I choose.
It says curing childhood cancer.
I would say I kind of believein trying to help those that
otherwise they may not have aspleasant a Christmas as they
might otherwise have.
So we have our visits and wehave a nice time.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
That's awesome.
That's awesome.
I know that you have tons andtons of opportunities to do
wonderful things throughout theyear and, gosh, you know, I
don't know anybody that doesn'tget a smile on their face when
they see you, either during theoff season or when they're
visiting you wherever they are,you know, during the on season,
which which kind of leads me tothe question, and you probably
(04:40):
get this asked all the time butyou know it's July and we're in
Tampa, Florida, so it's prettydarn hot down here.
What's the weather like upthere in the North Pole?
And like, when do things reallystart getting rolling for you?
Speaker 3 (04:54):
Well, they never stop rolling.
I'm running a, you know, a 724operation, 365 days a year.
I mean Mrs Claus will tell youit never stops up here.
Now you may not know, todd, wehave a giant dome over the North
Pole.
You can't see us because ofcourse we're elves and we need
(05:18):
the privacy that we have.
So we've got a dome that makesit look like just a regular
ground but underneath it's afull operation, a full city.
It's quite a large one but atthis time of year we've got the
dome up and it's very pleasantinside.
I've been quite busy actuallyin that first of all I make sure
(05:41):
that I oversee with the elvesthis whole matter of planting
crops for the reindeer feed.
We've got to have special feedfor the reindeer.
I mean you're talking, you know, roll Christmas Eve.
Well, I don't tell them exactlyhow far I'm going, but let's
say the estimates that have beenout there about 85 million
(06:03):
miles in one night aren't allthat far off.
So we've got crops in thefields up here doing quite well.
I'm pleased with that.
We've got reindeer traininggoing on all year long and you
know, for me some of thereindeer training are one really
practicing what I call dry roofand snowy roof landings.
(06:27):
I mean it's kind of different.
If you don't get the dry rooflandings right, then I've got to
have my roof repair elves comeup behind me and mop that roof
and that's no fun at all.
And we work on jumping.
I've got a certain way.
I want the sleigh to take offand then, of course you may find
(06:48):
it interesting, we actuallypractice pawing on the roof.
Speaker 2 (06:54):
Pawing.
What's that?
Speaker 3 (06:55):
P-A-W-I-N-G.
Speaker 2 (06:57):
Okay.
Speaker 3 (06:58):
You've read the stories where it says they can
hear the reindeer hoofs Justlike you.
There's a certain way we wantthings done.
Yeah, of course, and so I wantthat particular sound, that when
you hear something on the roofyou're not kind of saying, well,
that really sounds odd.
It sounds like a squirrel inthe attic.
No, no, no, I want you to know,it's the reindeer.
(07:20):
So we practice that certainsound of the reindeer tapping on
the roof so that it'smeaningful.
Some other things going on.
I'm studying the children'searly dreams of the year and
their spoken ideas.
Mrs Claus, she's working onsome new recipes, of course, for
yummy cookies and hot chocolate, and then the sleigh.
(07:42):
The sleigh is prettyinteresting, todd and hot
chocolate, and then the sleigh.
the sleigh is pretty interesting, todd.
I thought you know I'm runningcenturies ahead of you folk.
My propulsion system.
You know, in order to crank 85million miles in one night, my
propulsion system's got to bepretty trick.
But you know, I actually havebeen running into a problem here
the last decade.
(08:02):
The current propulsion systemis gated to 100 million miles.
Okay, the first route designscoming to me are over 100
million miles and I've got toturn to the elves and say, all
right, get me the operationsresearch elves and let's crank
it down, get their route right.
But I know I've got to getready for it.
So I've got a new propulsionsystem coming online.
(08:25):
It'll be there in about 10years.
It'll be 250 million miles inone night.
Speaker 2 (08:31):
Let me ask you so I mean, the only kind of visual
picture we have of the NorthPole is through movies, and so
I'm kind of curious is there amovie that is out that gives the
best representation of whatit's like at the North Pole?
Like I think of the movie Elfand I think of the movie like I
(08:52):
don't know Polar Express there's, you know, the modern movies
that kind of show what it's likein the North Pole before
Christmas and after Christmas.
Before Christmas and afterChristmas, is there one that
kind of you've seen that you'relike, wow, you know what this is
.
This is pretty close to whatit's actually like.
Speaker 3 (09:11):
Well, I tend to like the Polar Express A lot of
grandeur, a lot of yeah, it's alittle bit fanciful, I admit it,
but it captures the spirit ofthe North Pole.
We have so much positive,wonderful energy up here and we
(09:33):
do things in a very big butkind-hearted way.
We try to really encourage eachother.
To me, that's very veryimportant Encourage each other
so that we can all be the bestwe can be, and I think Polar
Express does that about as wellas you'd want it to be done,
(09:55):
short of it being a real guidedtour of the North Pole, which of
course I can't give becausethere are some reasons we have
secrets.
Speaker 2 (10:04):
No, that's great, I know in Polar Express there's
the part where some people canhear the bell and some people
can't hear the bell, and whenyou were talking about the paws
on the roof, I was thinkingabout that.
Like I imagine there's probablysome children that can hear
those paws on the roofs andothers that can.
Is that true?
Speaker 3 (10:28):
Well, when you say children, Todd, I've interacted
with some people over 100 yearsold and they still believe.
And so you're right.
There's a time and it grievesme, of course when that
wonderful child stops believing,they say, well, that wonderful
child stops believing, they say,well, life's become too real
for me, I can't believe in it.
(10:50):
But I'll meet those people intheir 30s, 40s, even 50, 60, 100
years old that still believeand trust me.
They hear those bells.
They hear those bells.
It really is a matter of youknow if it's important when you
say they believe, they believein the goodness of Christmas,
(11:12):
the message of love at Christmas, the care for one another at
Christmas, the desire to be goodin all your connections and all
your relations at Christmasgood in all your connections and
all your relations at Christmas, offering that extra little
word of cheer and encouragement,that opportunity to give and
(11:33):
more importantly than receive.
So those people they'll believetheir whole life long and I've
had that experience of meetingwith some of them.
Oh goodness, a few years ago Iremember a dear lady, 103 years
old, came over to see Santa in awheelchair.
(11:53):
She stood up, came over and satdown beside me and she said oh
Santa, I haven't had a picturewith you in a long time.
Speaker 2 (11:57):
Oh wow.
Well, we're going to take careof that right now, aren't we?
We have a wonderful picture.
Speaker 3 (12:03):
She got up and she started moving to her chair and
she turned around and she saidwell, you're a good santa.
Well, that blessed my heart, ofcourse, because I bet I just
wanted her to know that she wasspecial to santa.
So I think that's my answer.
That's my answer that's superawesome.
Speaker 2 (12:21):
I asked a couple people around the office that if
they had an opportunity to askyou a question, what would it be
?
So I've got a couple ofquestions from folks around the
office and you may or may nothave an answer for them, and
that's fine.
That's fine too, but one personwondered if you have a favorite
sport or sports team.
Speaker 3 (12:40):
Well, I do.
But if I did that I wouldcreate some frustration with
some others that I hadn't namedtheir team.
I think it's fair to say that Ifollow some well, they call it
football the rest of the world.
Speaker 1 (12:59):
In the.
Speaker 3 (12:59):
United States they call it soccer mobile sports, so
I admit that I follow some ofthat.
I call it soccer mobile sportsso I admit that I follow some of
that the US arena.
There are some college footballteams I like to follow.
I would admit that, but I'mprobably better off not naming
(13:22):
names, just so I don'tdiscourage or alienate some
people that are hoping I'd cheerfor their team.
Speaker 2 (13:25):
That's very well positioned, Santa.
I feel like maybe you've donean interview or two in your past
before Well played.
Here's another question, andthis absolutely comes from a mom
, and you'll probably see why ina second.
Did you come up with the elf onthe shelf idea?
Speaker 3 (13:50):
Well, it was actually .
It wasn't me directly.
I was wrestling with how do Iconnect with children even more,
because, obviously, as I said,I'm centuries ahead.
So I had the technology, but Iwanted to be able to let
children connect with me alittle more and I had some
(14:12):
letters coming in from parentsasking about that.
Santa can, can, we can, can youcome up with something that
would allow us to have you get alittle better eye on how the
children are doing?
Other than just letters andfinally I allowed that.
well, let's let them know aboutthe elf on the shelf and I know
(14:33):
there are some parents that kindof wish they'd never seen the
elf on the shelf.
There are others that for themit's a good experience in that
it gives them another pair ofeyes on the children.
Maybe if the parents are bothworking they can say well, you
know, we've got that elf on theshelf and they're kind of
(14:56):
watching to see how you're doing.
And I've got some connectionswith some places that actually
talk about elff on the Shelf andhow they're doing.
And I get a chance to remindsome of the children that hey, I
saw you the other day and youwere kind of being kind of mean
(15:16):
to your brother or sister, and Idon't think we want to do that.
And when you get that kind of aspecial moment, that child
looks at mom or dad and says howdid Santa know that?
Well, there's an elf on theshelf.
The other thing it's done forsome of the parents is it's
allowed them to have a littlefun Because you know, sometimes
(15:38):
they are actually elves and ofcourse elves can be a bit ornery
.
Can be a bit ornery, yes, tohave the elves moving around the
house or maybe doing a littlebit of mischief.
That's.
You know some of the parentscan interact and they can laugh
with the children over the elfantics.
Mm-hmm, when I'm talking tochildren and I know that you're
(16:04):
aware oh, there's one company Ichat with, someone called Talk
to Santa.
And I have a lot of visits withthem and I know that when I'm
doing that visit with a child, Imay say you know, I know you've
got that elf on the shelf,sparkly, and, by the way, I need
a little bit of help.
(16:24):
What's that, santa?
Well, sparkly wanted to comeover and check on you the other
night in your bed and theycouldn't get to your bed because
the floor was littered withtoys and clothes.
Can you help me with that?
And the child will look at momand dad off camera.
And how does he know that?
Speaker 2 (16:47):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (16:48):
And I'll end up saying, because I'm Santa that's
right, that's right, and hetold me about it.
So, you know it was anotheropportunity to connect with
children.
I'm very big about that.
Speaker 2 (17:00):
Yeah, I like that, I like that.
So you know, the elf on theshelf keeps an eye on kids and,
as I remember, my parents would,you know, especially around the
holiday season, remind me thatSanta was watching and there was
the naughty list and the nicelist, and when they would tell
me that it would mostly be youknow, don't do this because
(17:22):
Santa's watching I wondered ifthere are any things that you
can think of that a child oreven an adult can kind of,
instead of not do.
But are there things that kidsor adults can do that would help
to get them on the nice list?
Anything proactively positive?
Speaker 3 (17:39):
Oh, absolutely Like at this time of year.
Here in the United States, Iknow, and other countries like
the United States, children aregoing back to school and Santa
is a really big fan of doingyour best in school.
He believes in education.
Obviously, I've got to bepretty doggone smart myself to
(18:00):
be able to do what I'm doinghere at the North Pole.
So I'm the first to tellchildren look, it's important
you pay attention in theclassroom.
You do your homework to thebest of your ability.
You always give your besteffort.
So I call that a proactive doyour best.
And I think with the parents.
(18:21):
I know we've got a lot ofparents, the parents.
I know we've got a lot ofparents, adults in the workforce
that they kind of think maybetheir job's not that interesting
.
Well, I've got too muchbackground hundreds of years.
I end up saying, yeah, but doyour best.
Look at it as an opportunity tomake a statement that you're
(18:41):
not going to be drugged down bythe politics of the office or
the difficulties of the job.
You're actually a brand of youand what are you going to do to
make sure your performance issomething special?
Are you showing integrity ineverything you're doing?
Are you dealing with thatemployment opportunity with
(19:03):
honesty?
So I think that's a verypositive thing.
I think also another thing Istress a lot is talking to
people.
We've got a lot of children andadults.
Maybe there are grandparentsthat aren't getting any calls.
(19:25):
Maybe there are aunts or unclesthat they never hear from any
of the family.
For weeks and months on endI'll end up challenging a child
or asking an adult child hey,could you maybe give grandma or
grandpa a call and say hey, howare you doing I?
think that's proactive.
We have an awful lot of peoplethat around the world I can tell
you.
How are you doing?
I think that's proactive.
We have an awful lot of peoplethat around the world, I can
(19:47):
tell you, that are lonely.
We're connecting with them,particularly not unlike what you
deal with, todd.
Some of them are shut-ins.
They aren't getting around verymuch anymore and their speech
isn't the best.
Their words don't come aseasily as they used to.
(20:08):
But all I can tell you I knowthis the thrill they get when
they get a call, whether it's aphone call the old way or maybe
a Zoom call, oh my, oh my.
So I think that's another verypositive type behavior.
(20:28):
And then I'd turn to some ofthose adults and I'd say you
know, when's the last time youinvested real time in your child
?
When's the last time you tookthem out for an ice cream?
When's the last time you gotout to one of their ball games?
How about did you really getout to the parent-teacher
(20:49):
conferences this year?
I use that word, todd, invest,invest in that child, because
it's amazing that time of beinga child goes so quickly.
And you're left very quicklywith only memories.
I'd rather see that that parenthave special memories of look
(21:12):
at all the things we did, lookat the vacations we went on,
look at the great memories wehave where.
Oh, I remember when the child ason or daughter helped me paint
.
Oh yeah, there was more painton them than there was on the
wall, but that's why we paintedthe garage together, the inside
(21:34):
of the garage.
It wouldn't have hurt anything.
Well, you were asking forproactive.
I really am big on investingwith each other.
That's my message.
Speaker 2 (21:48):
Yeah, that makes memories too, which is
ultimately probably one of themost important things a family
can do.
Santa, you have no idea howmuch of a pleasure it has been
to chat with you.
I feel so fortunate to havebeen able to have just a few
minutes to talk to you.
As we roll into celebratingChristmas in July we're only
(22:09):
what five months away from thebig night.
You got to be super busy, so Iappreciate you taking some time
to chat with us.
I wanted to ask you that, as weget closer to the holidays, I
know that there's opportunitiessometimes for you to chat with
kids and adults, either throughvideo or calls.
(22:31):
Is there a way for parents orcaregivers to reach out to you
to schedule something like that?
Speaker 3 (22:37):
Well, there certainly is, and I actually interact
with several different welllet's just say, human companies
that do that kind of thing, oneof them that I've enjoyed for
years because of the way we'vekind of worked together
collaboratively, but one companycalled Talk to Santa.
(22:58):
They will allow me, as you justsuggested, to do both live video
calls from my studio in theNorth Pole.
We also can do prerecorded, ifgetting that live call is kind
of tough to do and we get tohave a very nice 8, 10,
12-minute interaction with thechildren.
(23:20):
And the children can beanywhere, as I said, from three
days to 103.
They actually do a lot of extrawork to help Santa connect with
special needs children andadults and I do mean adults too.
Some of my most precious visitsare with those special needs
adults that they really can'tget out.
(23:42):
They can't get out of the house.
Their words don't come easily.
But, boy, having a face-to-facewith Santa or having a
recording like that.
And then even now, you knowwe're doing some audio
recordings kind of early in theseason, just a little bit of
only in a minute or two, givingthem one or two reminders of
(24:04):
some interesting things I'maware that they're doing.
So that opportunity is there.
So, yeah, and I know there areothers besides Talk to Santa,
but I cite them because theyreally, like you, they have done
their best to excel at helpingSanta make that connection with
his friends literally around theworld.
You really haven't enjoyed yourtime at Christmas until you've
(24:29):
had that inquiry.
Santa, can you talk to a dearlittle girl in Russia?
Santa, I know it's afterChristmas, it's December 29th,
but can you visit with thatlittle girl?
And you get on a live call andthere's a precious little
five-year-old and the motherright beside them.
(24:50):
The mother's saying Santa,she's learning English and we
wanted her to speak with youthis year because you know,
english is the language of theworld and, santa, I'll help her
with any struggles she hascommunicating with you.
When you have that kind of acall, you kind of count that as
(25:11):
precious and you say that's anice way to connect and just
make a difference in somebody'slife.
And that's what it's all aboutfor Santa.
How can he make a difference?
How can he help them, whetherthat's a little girl or boy or
an adult?
How can I help them to be thebest they can be and be a great
(25:31):
contributor to the rest of thosearound them?
Speaker 2 (25:35):
Thank you so much, santa.
We look forward to seeing youin a few months, and we're going
to keep in touch with you untilthen too.
How's that?
Speaker 3 (25:42):
Oh, I would so enjoy it.
I have a lot of fun with thisidea of really making a
difference.
This world's got somechallenges and people like Santa
and you, todd, we can make acontribution to try to turn it
around a little bit, to makethat difference a positive
(26:03):
difference.
I really respect what you andre-employability are doing.
Job well done, job well done.
And never forget that Santa iswatching.
He likes what he's seeing.
Speaker 2 (26:17):
Thanks, Santa.
Speaker 3 (26:23):
Merry Christmas everybody, and thanks for
letting me visit.
Speaker 2 (26:26):
One thing I always think about, especially during
the holiday season, isnon-profit giving and
volunteering.
There's a big upswing of thattype of stuff in November and
December, but non-profits needhelp during the rest of the year
too.
So as we start making plans forour holiday season this year,
please keep in mind the need oflocal nonprofit organizations
throughout the year and see ifyou can do a little to help them
(26:48):
today.
Speaker 1 (26:48):
In 2023, roughly 2 million nonprofit organizations
were registered with theInternal Revenue Service in the
United States.
Speaker 2 (26:56):
Thanks for listening to REA Audio.
Please make sure to follow uson Spotify or Apple Podcasts or
Stitcher or wherever you getyour podcasts.
We appreciate you.
Have a great rest of your week.
perspective.
Perspective is spelled p e r s,p e c t, I, v e perspective,
the 30 000 foot view perspectiveput on someone else's shoes.
Perspective can also refer tothe state of existing in space
(00:20):
or one's view of the world.
Perspective rea audio space, orone's view of the world
Perspective.
Speaker 2 (00:26):
REA Audio Reemployability.
Have you started your holidayshopping yet?
Now, if you didn't realize it,the day this podcast posts will
be exactly five months until theChristmas and holiday seasons.
You're going to be singingChristmas carols and stringing
up lights before you know it.
Now, when I was a kid,celebrating Christmas in July
seemed like it was a bigger dealthan it is now.
(00:46):
It's a great marketingopportunity and I'm sure you're
gonna see some furniture salesgoing on this week.
But, believe it or not,celebrating Christmas in July
actually had some more innocentroots.
According to Southern LivingMagazine, Christmas in July was
first celebrated at a girls'summer camp in 1933.
The Keystone Camp in Brevard,North Carolina, decided to
(01:07):
dedicate two days, July 24th and25th, to the Christmas holiday,
complete with cotton, fake snow, a decked-out tree, a gift
exchange and, of course, Santa.
A few years later, in 1940, themovie Christmas in July opened
in theaters and the concept hitpop culture.
By the 1950s, retailers hadembraced the idea, and the rest
(01:29):
is history.
So since we're a mere 153 daysfrom Christmas, I hoped to get
you into the spirit a littleearly.
This year, we reached out tothe only person that really made
sense for this episode'sinterview.
You guessed it, it's SantaClaus himself.
Speaker 1 (01:46):
Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, lives
in the North Pole.
Every year, he brings gifts towell-behaved children on the
night before Christmas.
Speaker 3 (01:54):
Well, anytime that I get a chance to chat with
someone about how's it going uphere and what could people be
doing at this time of year, aswe're getting ready for
Christmas, those are importantthings to me, and any chance I
have to connect with specialpeople and I certainly, as I
said, I've been watching you fora lot of years.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
Way more years than I want to admit.
You know that right.
Speaker 3 (02:20):
Well, in my world, when you're 1,700 years, you're
pretty much a young'un to me.
Speaker 2 (02:26):
Well, that's nice of you to say.
I appreciate that REA workswith nonprofits all over the
country and we always see anuptick in not only need during
the holiday season but also likea willingness for people to
want to volunteer, and we wantedto take this Christmas in July
opportunity to kind of remindpeople that volunteering is
needed all year round, as wellas financial support to
(02:51):
non-profits.
So, santa, are there anyfavorite non-profits that the
elves or you or Mrs Claus liketo participate in?
Speaker 3 (02:54):
during the off season .
I'll just tell you right upfront, there's an organization
called Secret Sleigh wherethere's an arrangement for a
center to go and visit with achild that maybe can't get out
of their home.
It's quite an honor to do that.
It's very nice to connect withthem.
I remember one this year wherethe dear mother said to me well,
(03:15):
santa, she's playing possum.
Today she's not being veryresponsive, but I can tell you,
santa, she knows you're here, Ican monitor, I can watch her
heart monitor and her heart isgoing wild.
So I kind of believe in thatkind of stuff.
I can also tell you that whenI'm actually traveling
(03:36):
throughout the world, of courseI do that frequently and I have
places around the world.
In Arizona I have a place wherethe simple vehicle that I'm
driving it's my transformedsleigh, but it's a simple car.
The license plate simply saysHigh Santa, but beneath that
High Santa is the backgroundhere in Arizona that I found and
(04:01):
I choose.
It says curing childhood cancer.
That I found and I choose.
It says curing childhood cancer.
I would say I kind of believein trying to help those that
otherwise they may not have aspleasant a Christmas as they
might otherwise have.
So we have our visits and wehave a nice time.
Speaker 2 (04:19):
That's awesome.
That's awesome.
I know that you have tons andtons of opportunities to do
wonderful things throughout theyear and, gosh, you know, I
don't know anybody that doesn'tget a smile on their face when
they see you, either during theoff season or when they're
visiting you wherever they are,you know, during the on season,
which which kind of leads me tothe question, and you probably
(04:40):
get this asked all the time butyou know it's July and we're in
Tampa, Florida, so it's prettydarn hot down here.
What's the weather like upthere in the North Pole?
And like, when do things reallystart getting rolling for you?
Speaker 3 (04:54):
Well, they never stop rolling.
I'm running a, you know, a 724operation, 365 days a year.
I mean Mrs Claus will tell youit never stops up here.
Now you may not know, todd, wehave a giant dome over the North
Pole.
You can't see us because ofcourse we're elves and we need
(05:18):
the privacy that we have.
So we've got a dome that makesit look like just a regular
ground but underneath it's afull operation, a full city.
It's quite a large one but atthis time of year we've got the
dome up and it's very pleasantinside.
I've been quite busy actuallyin that first of all I make sure
(05:41):
that I oversee with the elvesthis whole matter of planting
crops for the reindeer feed.
We've got to have special feedfor the reindeer.
I mean you're talking, you know, roll Christmas Eve.
Well, I don't tell them exactlyhow far I'm going, but let's
say the estimates that have beenout there about 85 million
(06:03):
miles in one night aren't allthat far off.
So we've got crops in thefields up here doing quite well.
I'm pleased with that.
We've got reindeer traininggoing on all year long and you
know, for me some of thereindeer training are one really
practicing what I call dry roofand snowy roof landings.
(06:27):
I mean it's kind of different.
If you don't get the dry rooflandings right, then I've got to
have my roof repair elves comeup behind me and mop that roof
and that's no fun at all.
And we work on jumping.
I've got a certain way.
I want the sleigh to take offand then, of course you may find
(06:48):
it interesting, we actuallypractice pawing on the roof.
Speaker 2 (06:54):
Pawing.
What's that?
Speaker 3 (06:55):
P-A-W-I-N-G.
Speaker 2 (06:57):
Okay.
Speaker 3 (06:58):
You've read the stories where it says they can
hear the reindeer hoofs Justlike you.
There's a certain way we wantthings done.
Yeah, of course, and so I wantthat particular sound, that when
you hear something on the roofyou're not kind of saying, well,
that really sounds odd.
It sounds like a squirrel inthe attic.
No, no, no, I want you to know,it's the reindeer.
(07:20):
So we practice that certainsound of the reindeer tapping on
the roof so that it'smeaningful.
Some other things going on.
I'm studying the children'searly dreams of the year and
their spoken ideas.
Mrs Claus, she's working onsome new recipes, of course, for
yummy cookies and hot chocolate, and then the sleigh.
(07:42):
The sleigh is prettyinteresting, todd and hot
chocolate, and then the sleigh.
the sleigh is pretty interesting, todd.
I thought you know I'm runningcenturies ahead of you folk.
My propulsion system.
You know, in order to crank 85million miles in one night, my
propulsion system's got to bepretty trick.
But you know, I actually havebeen running into a problem here
the last decade.
(08:02):
The current propulsion systemis gated to 100 million miles.
Okay, the first route designscoming to me are over 100
million miles and I've got toturn to the elves and say, all
right, get me the operationsresearch elves and let's crank
it down, get their route right.
But I know I've got to getready for it.
So I've got a new propulsionsystem coming online.
(08:25):
It'll be there in about 10years.
It'll be 250 million miles inone night.
Speaker 2 (08:31):
Let me ask you so I mean, the only kind of visual
picture we have of the NorthPole is through movies, and so
I'm kind of curious is there amovie that is out that gives the
best representation of whatit's like at the North Pole?
Like I think of the movie Elfand I think of the movie like I
(08:52):
don't know Polar Express there's, you know, the modern movies
that kind of show what it's likein the North Pole before
Christmas and after Christmas.
Before Christmas and afterChristmas, is there one that
kind of you've seen that you'relike, wow, you know what this is
.
This is pretty close to whatit's actually like.
Speaker 3 (09:11):
Well, I tend to like the Polar Express A lot of
grandeur, a lot of yeah, it's alittle bit fanciful, I admit it,
but it captures the spirit ofthe North Pole.
We have so much positive,wonderful energy up here and we
(09:33):
do things in a very big butkind-hearted way.
We try to really encourage eachother.
To me, that's very veryimportant Encourage each other
so that we can all be the bestwe can be, and I think Polar
Express does that about as wellas you'd want it to be done,
(09:55):
short of it being a real guidedtour of the North Pole, which of
course I can't give becausethere are some reasons we have
secrets.
Speaker 2 (10:04):
No, that's great, I know in Polar Express there's
the part where some people canhear the bell and some people
can't hear the bell, and whenyou were talking about the paws
on the roof, I was thinkingabout that.
Like I imagine there's probablysome children that can hear
those paws on the roofs andothers that can.
Is that true?
Speaker 3 (10:28):
Well, when you say children, Todd, I've interacted
with some people over 100 yearsold and they still believe.
And so you're right.
There's a time and it grievesme, of course when that
wonderful child stops believing,they say, well, that wonderful
child stops believing, they say,well, life's become too real
for me, I can't believe in it.
(10:50):
But I'll meet those people intheir 30s, 40s, even 50, 60, 100
years old that still believeand trust me.
They hear those bells.
They hear those bells.
It really is a matter of youknow if it's important when you
say they believe, they believein the goodness of Christmas,
(11:12):
the message of love at Christmas, the care for one another at
Christmas, the desire to be goodin all your connections and all
your relations at Christmasgood in all your connections and
all your relations at Christmas, offering that extra little
word of cheer and encouragement,that opportunity to give and
(11:33):
more importantly than receive.
So those people they'll believetheir whole life long and I've
had that experience of meetingwith some of them.
Oh goodness, a few years ago Iremember a dear lady, 103 years
old, came over to see Santa in awheelchair.
(11:53):
She stood up, came over and satdown beside me and she said oh
Santa, I haven't had a picturewith you in a long time.
Speaker 2 (11:57):
Oh wow.
Well, we're going to take careof that right now, aren't we?
We have a wonderful picture.
Speaker 3 (12:03):
She got up and she started moving to her chair and
she turned around and she saidwell, you're a good santa.
Well, that blessed my heart, ofcourse, because I bet I just
wanted her to know that she wasspecial to santa.
So I think that's my answer.
That's my answer that's superawesome.
Speaker 2 (12:21):
I asked a couple people around the office that if
they had an opportunity to askyou a question, what would it be
?
So I've got a couple ofquestions from folks around the
office and you may or may nothave an answer for them, and
that's fine.
That's fine too, but one personwondered if you have a favorite
sport or sports team.
Speaker 3 (12:40):
Well, I do.
But if I did that I wouldcreate some frustration with
some others that I hadn't namedtheir team.
I think it's fair to say that Ifollow some well, they call it
football the rest of the world.
Speaker 1 (12:59):
In the.
Speaker 3 (12:59):
United States they call it soccer mobile sports, so
I admit that I follow some ofthat.
I call it soccer mobile sportsso I admit that I follow some of
that the US arena.
There are some college footballteams I like to follow.
I would admit that, but I'mprobably better off not naming
(13:22):
names, just so I don'tdiscourage or alienate some
people that are hoping I'd cheerfor their team.
Speaker 2 (13:25):
That's very well positioned, Santa.
I feel like maybe you've donean interview or two in your past
before Well played.
Here's another question, andthis absolutely comes from a mom
, and you'll probably see why ina second.
Did you come up with the elf onthe shelf idea?
Speaker 3 (13:50):
Well, it was actually .
It wasn't me directly.
I was wrestling with how do Iconnect with children even more,
because, obviously, as I said,I'm centuries ahead.
So I had the technology, but Iwanted to be able to let
children connect with me alittle more and I had some
(14:12):
letters coming in from parentsasking about that.
Santa can, can, we can, can youcome up with something that
would allow us to have you get alittle better eye on how the
children are doing?
Other than just letters andfinally I allowed that.
well, let's let them know aboutthe elf on the shelf and I know
(14:33):
there are some parents that kindof wish they'd never seen the
elf on the shelf.
There are others that for themit's a good experience in that
it gives them another pair ofeyes on the children.
Maybe if the parents are bothworking they can say well, you
know, we've got that elf on theshelf and they're kind of
(14:56):
watching to see how you're doing.
And I've got some connectionswith some places that actually
talk about elff on the Shelf andhow they're doing.
And I get a chance to remindsome of the children that hey, I
saw you the other day and youwere kind of being kind of mean
(15:16):
to your brother or sister, and Idon't think we want to do that.
And when you get that kind of aspecial moment, that child
looks at mom or dad and says howdid Santa know that?
Well, there's an elf on theshelf.
The other thing it's done forsome of the parents is it's
allowed them to have a littlefun Because you know, sometimes
(15:38):
they are actually elves and ofcourse elves can be a bit ornery
.
Can be a bit ornery, yes, tohave the elves moving around the
house or maybe doing a littlebit of mischief.
That's.
You know some of the parentscan interact and they can laugh
with the children over the elfantics.
Mm-hmm, when I'm talking tochildren and I know that you're
(16:04):
aware oh, there's one company Ichat with, someone called Talk
to Santa.
And I have a lot of visits withthem and I know that when I'm
doing that visit with a child, Imay say you know, I know you've
got that elf on the shelf,sparkly, and, by the way, I need
a little bit of help.
(16:24):
What's that, santa?
Well, sparkly wanted to comeover and check on you the other
night in your bed and theycouldn't get to your bed because
the floor was littered withtoys and clothes.
Can you help me with that?
And the child will look at momand dad off camera.
And how does he know that?
Speaker 2 (16:47):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (16:48):
And I'll end up saying, because I'm Santa that's
right, that's right, and hetold me about it.
So, you know it was anotheropportunity to connect with
children.
I'm very big about that.
Speaker 2 (17:00):
Yeah, I like that, I like that.
So you know, the elf on theshelf keeps an eye on kids and,
as I remember, my parents would,you know, especially around the
holiday season, remind me thatSanta was watching and there was
the naughty list and the nicelist, and when they would tell
me that it would mostly be youknow, don't do this because
(17:22):
Santa's watching I wondered ifthere are any things that you
can think of that a child oreven an adult can kind of,
instead of not do.
But are there things that kidsor adults can do that would help
to get them on the nice list?
Anything proactively positive?
Speaker 3 (17:39):
Oh, absolutely Like at this time of year.
Here in the United States, Iknow, and other countries like
the United States, children aregoing back to school and Santa
is a really big fan of doingyour best in school.
He believes in education.
Obviously, I've got to bepretty doggone smart myself to
(18:00):
be able to do what I'm doinghere at the North Pole.
So I'm the first to tellchildren look, it's important
you pay attention in theclassroom.
You do your homework to thebest of your ability.
You always give your besteffort.
So I call that a proactive doyour best.
And I think with the parents.
(18:21):
I know we've got a lot ofparents, the parents.
I know we've got a lot ofparents, adults in the workforce
that they kind of think maybetheir job's not that interesting
.
Well, I've got too muchbackground hundreds of years.
I end up saying, yeah, but doyour best.
Look at it as an opportunity tomake a statement that you're
(18:41):
not going to be drugged down bythe politics of the office or
the difficulties of the job.
You're actually a brand of youand what are you going to do to
make sure your performance issomething special?
Are you showing integrity ineverything you're doing?
Are you dealing with thatemployment opportunity with
(19:03):
honesty?
So I think that's a verypositive thing.
I think also another thing Istress a lot is talking to
people.
We've got a lot of children andadults.
Maybe there are grandparentsthat aren't getting any calls.
(19:25):
Maybe there are aunts or unclesthat they never hear from any
of the family.
For weeks and months on endI'll end up challenging a child
or asking an adult child hey,could you maybe give grandma or
grandpa a call and say hey, howare you doing I?
think that's proactive.
We have an awful lot of peoplethat around the world I can tell
you.
How are you doing?
I think that's proactive.
We have an awful lot of peoplethat around the world, I can
(19:47):
tell you, that are lonely.
We're connecting with them,particularly not unlike what you
deal with, todd.
Some of them are shut-ins.
They aren't getting around verymuch anymore and their speech
isn't the best.
Their words don't come aseasily as they used to.
(20:08):
But all I can tell you I knowthis the thrill they get when
they get a call, whether it's aphone call the old way or maybe
a Zoom call, oh my, oh my.
So I think that's another verypositive type behavior.
(20:28):
And then I'd turn to some ofthose adults and I'd say you
know, when's the last time youinvested real time in your child
?
When's the last time you tookthem out for an ice cream?
When's the last time you gotout to one of their ball games?
How about did you really getout to the parent-teacher
(20:49):
conferences this year?
I use that word, todd, invest,invest in that child, because
it's amazing that time of beinga child goes so quickly.
And you're left very quicklywith only memories.
I'd rather see that that parenthave special memories of look
(21:12):
at all the things we did, lookat the vacations we went on,
look at the great memories wehave where.
Oh, I remember when the child ason or daughter helped me paint
.
Oh yeah, there was more painton them than there was on the
wall, but that's why we paintedthe garage together, the inside
(21:34):
of the garage.
It wouldn't have hurt anything.
Well, you were asking forproactive.
I really am big on investingwith each other.
That's my message.
Speaker 2 (21:48):
Yeah, that makes memories too, which is
ultimately probably one of themost important things a family
can do.
Santa, you have no idea howmuch of a pleasure it has been
to chat with you.
I feel so fortunate to havebeen able to have just a few
minutes to talk to you.
As we roll into celebratingChristmas in July we're only
(22:09):
what five months away from thebig night.
You got to be super busy, so Iappreciate you taking some time
to chat with us.
I wanted to ask you that, as weget closer to the holidays, I
know that there's opportunitiessometimes for you to chat with
kids and adults, either throughvideo or calls.
(22:31):
Is there a way for parents orcaregivers to reach out to you
to schedule something like that?
Speaker 3 (22:37):
Well, there certainly is, and I actually interact
with several different welllet's just say, human companies
that do that kind of thing, oneof them that I've enjoyed for
years because of the way we'vekind of worked together
collaboratively, but one companycalled Talk to Santa.
(22:58):
They will allow me, as you justsuggested, to do both live video
calls from my studio in theNorth Pole.
We also can do prerecorded, ifgetting that live call is kind
of tough to do and we get tohave a very nice 8, 10,
12-minute interaction with thechildren.
(23:20):
And the children can beanywhere, as I said, from three
days to 103.
They actually do a lot of extrawork to help Santa connect with
special needs children andadults and I do mean adults too.
Some of my most precious visitsare with those special needs
adults that they really can'tget out.
(23:42):
They can't get out of the house.
Their words don't come easily.
But, boy, having a face-to-facewith Santa or having a
recording like that.
And then even now, you knowwe're doing some audio
recordings kind of early in theseason, just a little bit of
only in a minute or two, givingthem one or two reminders of
(24:04):
some interesting things I'maware that they're doing.
So that opportunity is there.
So, yeah, and I know there areothers besides Talk to Santa,
but I cite them because theyreally, like you, they have done
their best to excel at helpingSanta make that connection with
his friends literally around theworld.
You really haven't enjoyed yourtime at Christmas until you've
(24:29):
had that inquiry.
Santa, can you talk to a dearlittle girl in Russia?
Santa, I know it's afterChristmas, it's December 29th,
but can you visit with thatlittle girl?
And you get on a live call andthere's a precious little
five-year-old and the motherright beside them.
(24:50):
The mother's saying Santa,she's learning English and we
wanted her to speak with youthis year because you know,
english is the language of theworld and, santa, I'll help her
with any struggles she hascommunicating with you.
When you have that kind of acall, you kind of count that as
(25:11):
precious and you say that's anice way to connect and just
make a difference in somebody'slife.
And that's what it's all aboutfor Santa.
How can he make a difference?
How can he help them, whetherthat's a little girl or boy or
an adult?
How can I help them to be thebest they can be and be a great
(25:31):
contributor to the rest of thosearound them?
Speaker 2 (25:35):
Thank you so much, santa.
We look forward to seeing youin a few months, and we're going
to keep in touch with you untilthen too.
How's that?
Speaker 3 (25:42):
Oh, I would so enjoy it.
I have a lot of fun with thisidea of really making a
difference.
This world's got somechallenges and people like Santa
and you, todd, we can make acontribution to try to turn it
around a little bit, to makethat difference a positive
(26:03):
difference.
I really respect what you andre-employability are doing.
Job well done, job well done.
And never forget that Santa iswatching.
He likes what he's seeing.
Speaker 2 (26:17):
Thanks, Santa.
Speaker 3 (26:23):
Merry Christmas everybody, and thanks for
letting me visit.
Speaker 2 (26:26):
One thing I always think about, especially during
the holiday season, isnon-profit giving and
volunteering.
There's a big upswing of thattype of stuff in November and
December, but non-profits needhelp during the rest of the year
too.
So as we start making plans forour holiday season this year,
please keep in mind the need oflocal nonprofit organizations
throughout the year and see ifyou can do a little to help them
(26:48):
today.
Speaker 1 (26:48):
In 2023, roughly 2 million nonprofit organizations
were registered with theInternal Revenue Service in the
United States.
Speaker 2 (26:56):
Thanks for listening to REA Audio.
Please make sure to follow uson Spotify or Apple Podcasts or
Stitcher or wherever you getyour podcasts.
We appreciate you.
Have a great rest of your week.
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