Brockton Sets Santa Record

Brockton (Massachusetts) is claiming a new world record with more than 800 people gathering together yesterday afternoon in downtown Brockton to wear red and white Santa Claus hats at the same time, beating Mullingar, Ireland, which held the record last year with 700 people. Brockton had the record in 2008 with 507 Santa-hatted people.

“We’re bringing attention to the City of Brockton and its history,” said organizer John Merian.

“In 1890 James Edgar was the first department store Santa in the country at this spot, where Edgar’s Department Store was. Edgar was a philanthropic man and brought to life the character of Santa Claus. So this event is a way to honor him and bring our city together to have fun.”

And how hard could breaking a record possibly be for the City of Champions?

“We’re the City of Champions so of course we will beat the record,” said Mayor Linda Balzotti.

The unofficial tally of 814 red hats worn on Brockton’s Main Street in front of the George N. Covett Courthouse will be firmed up and verified to the last hat by an independent accountant later this week.

“There’s too many people here,” said Yamanie Washington, a fifth-grader at Edgar B. Davis School.

“It’s fun, but it’s just overwhelming,” she said.

“It’s really cool, but really crowded,” added Darrius LeClair, 8, second-grader at Arnone Elementary School.

Site Begins 19th Year of Tracking Santa Claus

Santa Update.com has started the annual effort to track Santa Claus. Since 1991 the site has provided news of Santa Claus and the North Pole for fans all over the world starting the effort every holiday season before Thanksgiving and updating news daily until Christmas Eve. On Christmas Eve, the site provides updates on Santa’s position and tells the story of Santa’s flight as he makes his way around the world.

“We are a little different than some Santa trackers out there,” said Elf Ernest, Santa’s Vice President of Public Relations. “We don’t get our data from NASA or from satellites. We track him ourselves straight from Santa’s sleigh and from Santa himself. Kids love to follow Santa but they have a lot of questions. We work all season to not only keep them informed but also to answer all their questions.”

The site began offline as a single effort to convince one little girl about the goodness of Santa Claus. Back in 1991 she was five years old and started a new family as her mother married. They started a tradition the little girl had never heard of before — Santa Claus. She didn’t believe at first but Elf Ernest worked with her all season long, sending her “Santa updates” every day via a fax machine from the North Pole. That tradition remains alive, though the little girl is now 24 years old. “Of course I still believe in Santa,” Aubree, age 24, told us via phone. “I still have those original Santa updates and I still follow what Elf Ernest writes each season.”

“Back then Aubree would write to ask questions like ‘Why do we use red and green at Christmas?’ or ‘How does Santa get around the world in one night?’ — things like that,” Elf Ernest said. “We answer those questions. Since that time we have handled questions from kids all over the world.”

Aubree took her faxed Santa updates with her to school to show to other kids. Soon, parents of other children wrote to Elf Ernest to get his updates and a tradition was born. He faxed from the North Pole for a few seasons before he found the Internet, where the updates have been ever since.

“Kids want to know everything. They want to understand how Santa’s sleigh flies. They want to be an elf. They want to know more about Mrs. Claus. So they write, write, write and we try to answer. That is our job.” Elf Ernest said.

Santa Update.com is open year round and feeds news to hundreds of websites and all of the top Christmas forums on the Internet. This year Santa Updates will expand to Merry Christmas Radio.

88 Percent of Adults Believe in Santa Claus

Nearly nine out of ten adults polled in an annual Christmas trends and opinions survey say they believe in Santa Claus. The survey, annually commissioned by My Merry Christmas.com, tracks public opinion about Christmas. Of nearly 4000 survey participants 88 percent said they believe in Santa Claus and encouraged belief in Santa for their children. This comes on the heels of an extraordinarily bad year for the public image of Santa Claus both in popular culture and the media.

“This is a significant result,” said Lora Jensen, of Magical-Santa-Letters.com. “Santa has been under constant attack by everyone from Hollywood to child psychologists. We feel there is a reason parents are resisting the constant barrage of negatively generated media about Santa Claus. At the end of the day, Santa is a far better role model and a positive influence upon anyone that celebrates Christmas”.

In Scotland parents were recently enraged over the public denial of the existence of Santa Claus by a referee interviewed in the media following a high profile sporting event. In defending his dishonesty over the calls made in a soccer match referee Dougie McDonald said “I’m sure every adult in this country in a few weeks will be telling their kids that a guy in a red suit is going to be coming down the chimney.“

One angry dad said: “I was driving along with my five-year-old son listening to the radio and then I have this guy telling the world that parents are lying about Santa. The next thing I’m getting all sorts of questions from the back seat about whether it is true that Santa isn’t real.”

For survey sponsors at My Merry Christmas.com, who commissioned the study for the 11th consecutive year, the debate over Santa Claus isn’t a new one. “Of course parents believe in Santa Claus in overwhelming numbers,” said Jeff Westover, editor of My Merry Christmas.com. “St. Nicholas was a real individual whose exploits for good are known all over the world and celebrated in many cultures. It is the media, big business, the entertainment industry and the godless who have crafted a demeaning image of Santa. Parents aren’t buying it and will never buy it because belief in Santa is a teaching tool of not only morals but significance for holiday observance.”

Jensen, who handles hundreds of letters from Santa each year, the magic of Santa has far reaching effects on young and old alike. “Santa is about giving, not receiving. He is about happiness, not the sarcasm of biting satire nor the cynicism of those who use his image to support a political agenda. He’s pure. They can’t take that away from parents and children.”

About Magical-Santa-Letters.com
Based in Lehi, Utah, Magical-Santa-Letters.com works with individuals in need of a personal letter from Santa Claus regardless of age or station. Founded in 2006, Magical-Santa-Letters.com crafts inspiring, custom letters that address not only the existence of Santa Claus but the deeper meanings of Christmas with each letter produced. Unlike other Santa letter providers each letter produced by Magical-Santa-Letters.com is hand-signed and no two letters are alike. Magical-Santa-Letters.com serves Santa believers around the world.

Contact Information
Lora Jensen
http://www.magical-santa-letters.com
770 E. Main Street, Suite 125, Lehi, UT 84043
801-413-1995

About My Merry Christmas.com
Founded in 1991 as an offline effort to teach the goodness and truth of Santa Claus to a five year old little girl My Merry Christmas.com has gone from an offline publication to become the most comprehensive Christmas resource online with thousands of features and the largest active year-round Christmas community on the Internet.

Contact Information
http://mymerrychristmas.com
Jeff Westover – Editor
877-638-9627

The Tradition of Portraying Santa Claus Spans Across Generations

Michael Rielly, the grandson of Rhode Island’s famed Santa Claus, James D. Rielly, will attend the final signing ceremony of the Santa Claus Oath on November 6, 2010 in Santa Claus, Indiana.

James D. “Jim” Rielly’s career as Rhode Island and Southern New England’s most recognizable Santa Claus spanned over 60 years. He began his Santa Claus career in 1928 and was featured locally and nationally in both print and television. He was recognized by a host of dignitaries including Senator Claiborne Pell, President Dwight D. Eisenhower, and Pope John Paul II. In 1979 his name was recorded in the Senate Congressional Record as “James D. Rielly – A Truly Remarkable Santa Claus From Rhode Island”.

Over the course of his career, Santa Jim Rielly took no money for his appearances. After Jim Rielly’s passing in 1991, his grandson Michael Rielly took over the role as Santa Claus. In his grandfather’s honor, Michael Rielly appears at many of the same charitable organizations and hospitals his grandfather once visited.

On November 6, 2010, hundreds will gather in Santa Claus, Indiana to witness the final signing ceremony of the Santa Claus Oath. There, Michael Rielly will represent his famous grandfather at the event.

The Santa Claus Oath outlines eight principles that a Santa Claus should follow. Authored by Santa Claus Historian and Professional Santa Claus, Phillip L. Wenz, the Santa Claus Oath was inspired by two legendary Santa Clauses; Jim Yellig of Santa Claus, Indiana and Charles W. Howard of Albion, New York.

The Santa Claus Oath is a reminder to all who portray Santa Claus of the ideals for which Santa Claus truly stands for,” said Phillip L. Wenz, “We are honored to have James D. Rielly become part of the Oath.”

After the signing, the Santa Claus Oath Book will be sealed and placed into a time capsule at Santa’s Candy Castle in Santa Claus, Indiana.

“I am so proud to be able to represent my grandfather at this historic event,” said Michael Rielly, “Papa took the role of being Santa Claus very seriously and I am sure he will be smiling down on us on November 6.”

About Michael Rielly
Michael Rielly has portrayed Santa Claus for over 20 years and is a third generation Santa Claus and is the founder of ClausNET.com (http://www.clausnet.com), the world’s premier Santa Claus social network and resource for Santa Claus, Mrs. Claus, and Elves for the purposes of sharing stories, advice, news, and information. When not appearing as Santa Claus, Michael Rielly works in as a high tech sales and marketing professional serving in various roles; founder, board member, and business development.

About the Santa Claus Oath
The eight principles that make up the Santa Claus Oath (santaclausoath.webs.com) were written with the ideals of what portraying Santa should be about. Authored by professional Santa, Phillip L. Wenz, the Oath was inspired by the lives of the two most prolific Santa Claus actors of the 20th century: Charles W. Howard of Albion, New York and Raymond “Jim” Yellig of Santa Claus, Indiana. Upon writing the Santa Claus Oath, the document was adopted by nearly every Santa Claus organization and individual Santa portrayer in the world. The final signing ceremony for the Santa Claus Oath will be held on November 6, 2010 in Santa Claus, Indiana.