Santa Claus goes virtual due to Covid

Some have even started companies making personalised videos for kids

Chicago: As the pandemic rages, children’s visits with Santa Claus are going virtual — to protect both them and the men in high-risk groups who dress up as old St. Nick.

“I’m not fooling around with the pandemic,” said Joe Harkins, an 87-year-old Santa from Jersey City, New Jersey. “I’m not going to risk my life for any family or public events. It’s just too risky.” Harkins, like many of his brothers-in-red, as many Santas refer to each other, has taken his winter gig online, opting to swap in-person visits for virtual ones.

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He has even gone so far as to start a company called Santa Encounters where prospective Santas can sign up to make personalised videos for children.

“By definition, most Santas are in the most high-risk category either by age or underlying medical conditions,” said Ric Erwin, head of the California-based Fraternal Order of Real Bearded Santas.

John Sullivan, an 81-year-old Santa from Streamwood, Illinois, has shifted to all virtual visits. This is the first year in his 30-year Santa career that he will not see children in person.
But this comes with the advantage of learning, in advance from the parents, about the kids he will speak to.

“I learn their names, the names of their siblings, what they want, the name of their pet, things like that. So, when I start talking to the kids they are like, ‘Hey, this Santa knows all about me!'” said Sullivan.

“If you’re in a mall where there’s a big line of kids, you don’t know anything about them.” The pandemic hasn’t wiped out all mall Santas, although it has altered the way many visits are conducted.

Cherry Hill Programs, which runs Santa visits at more than 700 retail locations throughout the US, has made visits with Santa a contactless experience this year.

Guests need to wear masks and make reservations to eliminate lines, Santa and staff have daily health screenings and temperature checks, and children are not allowed to sit on Santa’s lap.

Instead, Santa sits on his high chair with a plastic shield over his face and a plexiglass sheet in front of him while guests are seated on a bench six feet in front of him, facing a masked photographer who then takes a picture. Additionally, the company has rolled out a virtual option as well this year.