Letters to Santa Claus can be emailed, and even texted to the North Pole, yet there’s still something special in a letter hand-written by a child full of hopes and dreams. It’s such a fun tradition to sit with your children while sipping hot chocolate, while they write a letter, or draw a picture to mail to Santa. Children list what toys they want from Santa on Christmas morning, while explaining why they should be on the “Nice List,” and not the “Naughty List.”
Dear Santa Claus,
I have been good all year. I would like a remote control robot and a racecar that does flips.
I hope you like the cookies my Mom and I made for you last year, we will be making them again.
Love, Logan
Letters from Santa Can Receive Actual Greetings from the North Pole
Did you know your child can actually get a response from the North Pole thanks to the elves at the United States Postal Service? The USPS boasts two programs that spread Christmas magic: Greetings from the North Pole and USPS Operation Santa.
When your children send letters to Santa, the Greetings from the North Pole program will send your personal Santa Letter back with a North Pole postmark. (However, you do have to help the magic along just a little, well maybe more than a little.)
The U.S. Postal Service program, Greetings from the North Pole, lets your child receive a letter from the North Pole. First, have your child write a letter or draw a picture to send to Santa Claus.
Place your child’s letter to Santa in an envelope addressed to Santa Claus, North Pole.
Read More: Easy, Yet Magical Ideas for Elf on the Shelf This Year
Next, you write a personalized note to your child signed: “From, Santa” or “Love, Santa”.
Here’s an example letter from Santa:
Dear Sophie,
It was so nice to receive your letter. The picture you sent me of my reindeer is beautiful.
I hung your picture in my workshop. I’m glad to see that you are practicing the piano each day
and working well with others on the soccer team. Keep up the good work. I will be visiting your
home very soon.
Love, Santa
The personalized letter from Santa can be short and sweet, or a bit on the long side. It can be hand-written or typed. It’s best to include some response to your child’s letter, as well as a few personal details so your children will know that Santa is watching when their sleeping and when they are awake. You want your kiddos to be certain that Santa “knows if they’ve been bad or good, so they’ll be good for goodness sake.”
Read More: 10 Wonderful Ways to Fill Your Christmas Bucket List
Put both letters (the one to Santa from your child, and the one “from Santa”) in the same envelope addressed to your child with the return address: SANTA, NORTH POLE.
Place the complete envelope in a larger envelope with the correct postage and send it to this North Pole address for Santa:
North Pole Postmark
Postmaster
4141 Postmark Drive
Anchorage, AK 99530-9998.
Santa’s helpers at the USPS do encourage you to send your letters by Dec. 10 so that your return letter will arrive before Christmas. Your children will love when they write Santa a letter and get reply directly from the North Pole. The twinkle will be shining in their eyes as they read the letters written specifically to them by the jolly elf himself.
USPS Operation Santa takes letters to Santa a step further than just a return letter postmarked from the North Pole. Children of all ages write letters to Santa requesting their Christmas wish list big and small. You and other elves across the country get to help Santa. You get to create Christmas magic by adopting a letter, shopping, and shipping gifts. You get to make a Christmas wish come true all in the spirit of Santa.
Letters will be posted for this Christmas at the end of November.
The USPS scans letters to Santa keeping personal information hidden. You create an account read through letters, adopt a letter and make the magic happen. The gifts are sent on behalf of the North Pole. You can adopt individual letters or work with a group to adopt several as of November 28. It’s such a great program where you, your family, or your group of friends get to actually be Santa Claus sending the exact gifts a child wants anonymously. You get to keep the magic of Christmas alive for someone else’s child.
Letters to Santa Save the Day in Miracle on 34th Street
If it’s not already part of your holiday traditions to watch “Miracle on 34th Street” with your family then add it to your list. The 1947 movie, as well as the variety of remakes, tells the tale of Kris Kringle who takes the place of an intoxicated Macy’s Day Parade Santa at the last minute. He then fills the role of the store Santa. Of course, his name is Kris Kringle and he declares that he is “the real Santa.” It leads to a court case to determine his mental health and whether or not he really is Santa Claus.
Read More: Christmas Traditions from around the world
In the movie, the United States Post Office delivers multiple giant mailbags of letters to the Santa Claus address at the courthouse for Kris Kringle. His attorney argues that if the U.S. Post Office, a branch of the federal government recognizes Kris Kringle as Santa Claus, it must be true. The case is dismissed.
Letters to Santa Validated by Newspaper Editor in 1897
One of the most famous Operation Santa Claus real stories came in the form of a newspaper editorial in 1897. An 8-year-old girl, Virginia O’Hanlon, wrote a letter to the editor at The Sun, a New York newspaper of the time:
“Dear Editor: I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. Papa says, If you
see it in The Sun, it’s so. Please tell me the truth, is there a Santa Claus?” – Virginia O’Hanlon.
The Sun newspaper editorial responded to Virginia’s letter:
Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists just as certainly as love and generosity and
devotion exist, and you know that they abound…
The editorial written by newsman Francis Pharcellus Church has been reprinted around the holidays in newspapers ever since. It has appeared in movies, posters, stamps, and other editorials in part or in whole. The newspaper could have simply ignored a letter to the editor from an 8-year-old, but they took the time to write a beautiful piece about having faith in what you cannot see.
Writing letters to Santa is a rite of passage for children at Christmas time. Embrace the tradition. Embrace the magic and the fun. How wonderful that the United States Post Office continues to offer programs to keep the magic alive for children. How remarkable that the U.S. Post Office has been “playing Santa” since 1912 when Postmaster General Frank Hitchcock allowed and encouraged post office employees and citizens to respond to letters. Sharing the Christmas spirit with children will spark joy and imagination in them. And, one day, they will share the magic with others.
Sources: USPS Operation Santa, Greetings from the North Pole, Newseum.com.
Photo Credits: Pexels, Unsplash, and Pixabay.
WANT TO READ MORE?
Check out Daily Mom’s article Top 3 Places for Ugly Christmas Sweater Ideas on a Budget.
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