"THE PRESIDENTIAL SANTA CLAUS"

Let me share my day with the real one... Issue #43

if Only i…could honor George’s life with 10,000 likes and shares for being our Presidential Santa Claus from 1956 to 1993.

I hope this story touches the heart of every reader so much that you want to share it with your subscribers and followers and restack it in his honor.

Santa, You were real, you are still in our Hearts, and you and Mrs. Claus will never be forgotten, at least not by me…Ollie G, aka Rudolf. xx

My parents were incredibly generous to children, especially sick ones, on holidays like Christmas. When they were introduced to “The Real Presidential Santa Claus” back in the 1970s, they became dear friends.

Robert was the real deal and was inducted into the International Santa Claus Hall of Fame as a Charter Member – December 2010

He had a real white curly beard, pure white natural hair, and an incredibly loving wife, Mrs. Claus. She used to curl his beard with those old-fashioned curlers you would heat up and then roll in your hair.

I never saw anyone other than Santa using them for their Beards. Mrs. Claus would also iron his Santa outfits, which he wore 365 days a year.

Depending on the weather, he had different outfits. Yes, he even wore Hot Red shorts.

His birth name was Robert George, 1924-1998. We truly miss him!

THE ONE AND ONLY PRESIDENTIAL SANTA EVER.

Robert became the “Nation’s official Santa Claus” in 1956 for President Dwight D. Eisenhower. He subsequently accepted similar invitations from Presidents John F. Kennedy, Richard M. Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, and George H. W. Bush until 1993.

The National Christmas Tree is a large evergreen tree located in the northeast quadrant of the Ellipse near the White House in Washington, D.C. Since 1923, the tree has been decorated as a Christmas tree. Early in December, the President and First Lady of the United States traditionally light the tree. Every president since Franklin D. Roosevelt has also made formal remarks during the tree lighting ceremony.Since 1954, this event has marked the start of month-long festivities known as the Pageant of Peace. The line of smaller trees around the National Christmas Tree, representing the U.S. states, the five U.S. territories, and the District of Columbia, is referred to as the Pathway to Peace.
Wikipedia.

Robert was known everywhere as Santa, and Mrs. Claus was known for her homemade fudge. One little piece would send you into orbit.

Was the fudge amazing? YES, absolutely it was!

Each bite must have contained a five-pound bag of sugar, so you had to be very careful giving them to kids. After eating a few pieces, they would fly high and take a few days to settle down.

Santa invited me to spend an entire day with him in early December to experience what it was like to be him. I was willing, and Santa said, “You are going to be Rudolf.”

It didn’t feel so exciting now. Was I to wear a reindeer outfit for the day?

No, he gave me a red sweater, black pants I had, and a unique hat. It was a spin-off from his Santa’s hat, but not exactly like it. I wore red sneakers because I thought they would look cool. Having zero idea what we would do for the day, he arranged to pick me up in a Limousine, a stretch one at that.

First, we went to my parents' warehouse and loaded up with gifts for the kids. The limousine was packed with gifts, and only the driver and the two of us were in the back seat.

You had to see it to believe it. He had filled dozens of Santa Claus red bags to the top with gifts, filling the trunk, front seat, and almost every inch of the interior.

We were on the 405 FWY heading North, and I listened to one story after another as Santa shared his life with me, or at least a good part of it, throughout the day.

As we were driving, the traffic was slow, and Santa saw something ahead on the shoulder of the Freeway and told the driver to slow down to a crawl.

He rolled back the sunroof, stuck his head out, and yelled at the top of his voice, his white beard blowing in the wind and his red hat flopping.

MERRY CHRISTMAS, Mr.Police Officer!! Please don’t give him a ticket. The Policeman dropped his pad and pen and leaped as if he was about to get run over. The voice was riveting through the street. People started honking their horns, and it became somewhat of entertainment. He was my muse; I watched and loved every moment.

Soon, we arrived at our first stop, the Children’s Hospital of UCLA. The driver pulled up as if he already knew the route—he did! He had driven Santa around for years. Santa said, “Rudolf, jump out, get your hat on, and grab a few bags.”

Wow, it was only the beginning of December in Southern California, and the Santa Ana winds were still in the air—or at least I thought so. I was sweating like crazy, carrying all these gifts.

Next, we were greeted with love from the staff, who were expecting Santa to arrive but not Rudolf, LOL.

I went room to room with Santa, and as he belted out " Ho, Ho, Ho,Merry Christmas" and "Happy New Year," he opened the bags and passed out gifts to the sick children.

These were kiddies in such pain that you could see sadness, tears and loneliness on their faces. Santa made sure to change all of that for just that moment in time.

I loved the look of pure Joy as I kept opening the bags and going to the next room, then the next, and so on. I loved how he would blurt out Merrrrry Christmas at the top of his lungs.

Practice makes for perfect. He was “ Perfect in his inflection.” Just enough.

It never got boring, but we ran out of time, so we went on to the next place.

That day, we went from one hospital to another to another until it became dark outside, and we were completely out of gifts in every one of the Red Santa bags.

Santa did not disappoint at all. This man's energy was terrific after at least 10 hours of driving, gifting, and talking with everyone he met.

My time as Rudolf was ending and my day was filled with miracles. How could I ever relive the miracles I experienced just in those few hours? Santa gave me a gift I have not forgotten to this day.

Robert George was Santa Claus to six U.S. Presidents, and his year-round Christmas display charmed thousands of disadvantaged and disabled children at his home in Southern California. He started playing Santa to underprivileged and needy children in 1949.

After retiring from cutting hair, he moved to Los Angeles in 1962, where he bought a home and decorated it as a permanent display called “Santa’s Dreamland.”

He lived 24 hours a day, every day, as Santa. His home's electric bills were massive as he had snow on the roof year-round. Trains and lights went on every night of the year, and he turned his Garage into a children’s play area.

During the Christmas Season, bus tours specifically drove to his home to show off the Magic of his life at Christmas. He gave toys away every day. He loved life!

He loved giving more than receiving, as he would pass on anything one gave to Santa. He was the gift, except no one ever had to unwrap him. He was alive and well for all to enjoy—I sure did!

A movie based loosely on George’s (Santa) life called “A Different Kind of Christmas” aired on the Lifetime Channel in 1997

The hugs and love were something I would never forget, and many years later, together with my wife, I paid it forward to Mattel’s UCLA Children’s Hospital.

….ifOnlyi…. short stories are published chronologically and follow my life growing up in California from 4 years old. If you’ve just found me, the stories will come together when you start reading from….Issue #1