Operation Santa, run annually by the U.S. Postal Service (USPS), has provided a unique insight into the lives of young Americans in 2020, as many letters postmarked for the North Pole express how the coronavirus pandemic has impacted children and parents this Christmas.
As a 108-year-old program now run nationwide, anyone, anywhere in the country can send a letter to Santa and it will be uploaded into the system — if it’s addressed correctly and has a postage stamp. People can then adopt one, or multiple letters, and purchase gifts to ship.
“2020 has seen its share of challenges affecting individuals and families in so many ways. COVID-19 resulted in job losses, temporary unemployment, and, sadly, the loss of family and friends. Couple that with devastation from natural disasters, and it’s easy to see why USPS Operation Santa program is more important than ever,” USPS spokeswoman Kim Frum said in a statement to Fox News.
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In one letter, a boy named James described how despite his family getting into a car accident, and not having a lot of money after his grandmother lost her job, he was still grateful that they all remained healthy and stayed indoors to spend quality time together.
“I’m praying you can help us have Christmas this year. We don’t have a tree honestly we don’t have money for anything not even my birthday in November. But it’s OK I understand because my grandparents have been raising me and I love them very much,” the letter read.
“I forgot the COVID-19 was also in this struggle,” the boy continued. “We never got it. We just stayed safe. But it was different. We got closer — did lots of family stuff like played games, connect 4 and cooked. Church brought us food one time.”
As of Thursday, nearly 17,000 letters have been adopted and nearly 27,000 adopters have been registered, Frum said. She explained that there are many letters this year mentioning the pandemic, “but it’s not overwhelming.”
Another letter penned by a boy named Anthony asked Santa to have his elves create a specific time of video game similar to the movie Jumanji that would allow him to escape from the pandemic.
“Most of these days in COVID I really feel down in the dumps and that game will kinda be like me [sic] way to escape reality. Hope you have a Merry Christmas,” Anthony wrote.
Frum said not all letters are written by children, and, in a third shared with Fox News, a woman named Hally E. asked for help affording a more reliable vehicle now that the coronavirus made public transportation “not safe for kids.” A single mother of three children, aged 9, 8 and 2 and a half, Halley said she was “diagnosed with cancer last year and I have to get checks every 6 months down state.”
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“I have a vehicle at the moment but I can’t afford to get the transmission fixed. I am not asking for a brand new vehicle,” she wrote. “If someone can make my only wish come true would be so appreciated.”
For security reasons, potential adopters must be vetted by going through a short registration and ID verification process before they are allowed to adopt any letter. Shipping these packages can be completed at a participating Post Office location which will allow the requesting and responding families to remain anonymous. All letters are searchable by state.
Adoptions opened on USPSOperationSanta.com on Dec. 4 and run through Dec. 19. The program started officially accepting letters on Nov. 16 and will continue accepting them through Dec. 15. But the postal service has been receiving letters since at least late October.
“The program has always been about providing holiday gifts for families who may not have the means to provide for anything more than basic everyday needs. This year, there are likely more families impacted financially and emotionally,” Frum said. “It will be hard to celebrate the holidays without loved ones, whether because of distance or actual loss. But being able to provide even the tiniest bit of normalcy or spark of happiness to those in need would mean the world to so many people right now.
“The holidays are about kindness, joy, love, family, and friends. The adopters of the letters in the program truly embody the spirit of the season by opening their hearts and showing those in need that they are not alone and they deserve to have a special season too.”
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Letters must include Santa’s mailing address, complete with ZIP Code, a return address, and a stamp: Santa Claus, 123 Elf Road, North Pole, 88888.
