• Plan now!  Save your family from guessing.

• Decide how your clients will be informed and taken care of.

• Decide what will happen to your wardrobe and belongings.

• How do you want your personal life remembered?

• How do you want your Santa or Mrs. Claus life remembered?

In each of our lives, there will come that one day when you realize that you can no longer continue the functions of Santa Claus or Mrs. Claus.  And to the extreme, it may be the Almighty is telling you it is time to prepare for your final act. 

When that day finally comes, we will join our Lord in the Hereafter.  We will take that last Sleighride and enter the Gates of Heaven to join our Lord God, the Saints, and all loved ones who preceded us.

But in the meantime, there are some things that you can do.  For your own personal satisfaction, and to make things easier for your loved ones.

So, I want to talk about preparing for that final day. It may be years away.  But by making some plans now, you can save family members and loved ones from the worry of guessing what you wanted.

How do you wish to be remembered?  This is regarding your personal life and history and your Santa or Mrs. Claus life and history.  What will happen to your wardrobe and North Pole belongings?  If you are still working every Christmas, how will your clients be informed and taken care of?

My suggestion is for you to take a little time to plan for those future days when your life will change.  Hopefully it is a long way off, but nevertheless, it will be here one day.  I am almost 77 years old, and this just happens to be something I have been thinking about.

For most of us, life goes on and we continue giving the joy of Santa’s visit or appearance to everyone.  For others, however, some challenges may arise.  Usually this is medical or health related, either to the individual or to a loved one that needs our care.

If something happens to you what is your status?  If your personal challenge is one that physically curtails your work as Santa, but you still have more time, more years left, you might wish to consider becoming a “Santa Emeritus.”   More details can be found on the School4Santas website about becoming Santa Emeritus.  

Fortunately, today, we live longer than our predecessors, even when we become physically challenged.  We take better care of ourselves, and we have better health care.  But even with this, the time will come. Even if we are physically challenged and must forgo holiday events, we often can still function and can enjoy what life has to offer.

As a “Santa Emeritus,” any Santa can easily explain a walker, wheelchair, or electric scooter, and say that he has retired from the regular work of supervising the elves and delivering the toys and has now turned that over to a new Santa, his son, or brother, “Fred.”

You can also continue your work as Santa via “Virtual” video visits.  But that is another topic for another day.

So let me get into the main reason for talking about the last Sleigh Ride.

I guess that occasionally you may already be receiving mailers or other information on planning for the hereafter.  You know.   The flyers from cremation societies and funeral homes.  This is a simple message that you should start planning.  It will be good for you and your loved ones.

And if you are a veteran, now is a suitable time to check with the VA on what is available to you and your family when that day comes.  

So, I wish to give you some of my views on what I feel a Santa or Mrs. Claus should consider and plan for.   I mean, why just leave it to others.  And really, why put the burden on your children and loved ones to figure out what to do?   

Now is the time to put some notes down on paper or take some action on what you wish to be done.  What will happen to your Wardrobe and attire.  Are there any collectibles you wish to give away?   And what will they say at your services/celebration?  How do you wish to be remembered?

This does not necessarily need to be in your will, but having something for the family to follow, in your own words, is incredibly special.  Start by creating a small file or envelope where you can collect everything you will need to do you wish your family to have.  

SANTA’S RED FILE

Someone suggested to me a few years ago that every Santa should have a “Red File,” or “Red Envelope.”  This is a subtle way to plan and to give loved ones your thoughts and directions should something happen to you. 

What I am covering here today are just my thoughts and notes regarding the Santa and Mrs. Claus part of your life.  You may wish to check on-line, or with a Memorial counselor, to get one of their checklists for all the other required materials and items you wish to make sure your family has or can get access to.

Your Santa/Mrs. Claus “Red” file or envelope should contain a check list, detailing what is in the folder.  This will help the family in responding to your requests. With the checklist they should find the following:

1. A list of your clients, or bookings that you have scheduled or are planning on scheduling. This is all your clients, families you visit, and customers plus the contact information for each. They need to be informed of your passing.  You can decide in advance on how you wish they be informed.  You have two options here.

One, you can add to the list of clients, the name and contact information of a fellow Santa that you wish to pass the booking along to.  Or two, you could give the name of your local or regional Santa association and ask them to distribute your clients to other members.  In either case you may also want to include how you want to have the new Santas take over the work of replacing you.  Most important, the message is that you have “Retired.”

Some Santas do ‘retire’ and have some time to decide what to do with their clients.  They personally call their fellow Santas and turn over the bookings, setting everything in place.  This relieves the family from having to deal with the changes.

2. A list of personal belongings that need to be distributed, donated, or sold. One thing that has become apparent in recent years is, “What does the family do with Santa or Mrs. Claus wardrobe?”  A lot has been invested in these items, and it is a shame when we find that something incredibly special was relegated to a thrift store.  One Santa recently found that a $700 Custom Santa suit sold for $15 at a thrift store and was then cut down for a seven-year-old’s Halloween costume. 

This is not to say that donating to your favorite charity or thrift store is not good.  But often your items may have a much larger role in the hands of another Santa or Mrs. Claus.   My suggestion is to make a simple list of how you, personally, wish to see your items distributed, sold, or given away.   In this way you also have the satisfaction and comfort of knowing where they are going, how they will be used, and how they may benefit and touch others.  

Again, if you have time to distribute, give away or sell your assets, it will make it a lot easier for your family.  To assist you, I drafted a Personal Property Memorandum.  Click here for some guidelines. https://www.school4santas.com/personal-property-memorandum/

3. Create an outline of details on how you wish your work as Santa or Mrs. Claus to be presented or shared for the rest of your life.  This is something you can write yourself or have a family member assist you in writing.   Yes, you can write your own Obituary. (I like to call it a Memorial Story or Celebration Story.)

4. Explain in detail how you wish to be seen by loved ones at your services.  Some families desire an open casket.  Others like it open only for close family and then closed for the rest of the services.   In some cases, families may want to have a more personal viewing and service for you, and then later, when there has been more time to notify everyone, the family hosts a memorial celebration. 

This is especially nice when the loved one has lots of friends that may have to come from a distance, or the family needs a little time to plan.   There is also sometimes a need to do something just for the family to cover our previous, pre-Santa, life.   And then, later, to host a memorial that is holiday themed or befitting a Santa.

Because of the second life we have had, that of being the magical and benevolent Santa or Mrs. Claus, we have two personalities to consider when planning for that day.  Many of our relatives, fellow co-workers, and family know us from our youth, our previous life, and careers, etc.  

Additionally, you will also have those who know you from your current life, in your Holiday Persona.  Both can, and in most cases should, be part of your final services. 

5. You can also outline what activities, readings, or songs you wish to have presented at your services.  You can ask special friends to read something or to tell everyone about one of your favorite experiences.  And of course, you will have other friends who will want to step forward to talk about the most memorable moments they have known about you.  

If you belong to a Santa Association, they might be a part of the event.  Additionally, you can ask that someone read the poem, “The Last Sleighride.”   This has become a tradition at memorial services for hundreds of Santas and Mrs. Claus.   Click here to read, “The Last Sleigh Ride” by Santa by Philip D. Gurganus.

Another idea that is popular for services when a group of Santas pay their respects, is to remind them not to wear their Santa Suits and depending on the family’s wishes, their Santa hats.  However, a nice touch is to have small 8” x 8” squares of red material for each visiting Santa to place in their left breast pocket as a red pocket square.  This identifies all the fellow Santas attending the services.

6. And although you may have spent the twilight of your life at Santa or Mrs. Claus, I have a strong opinion that we should not be wearing a Santa Suit or Holiday attire when being viewed.  Santa and Mrs. Claus never die and therefore, they will never really have a memorial service. 

Besides, we never want to see anyone announcing that “Santa died!”  Nor to have a child to ever see Santa in a red suit, in a Casket.   You can keep your beard and if you are a member of a special club or order, you might wear the jacket or clothing of that group.  For example, if you are not giving something away, say your kilt, if you are a member of Klan Klaus, or your blazer if you are a member of the Knights of St. Nicholas you might wear them for your services.

7. In your memorial notes you can explain in detail how you got your calling to help Santa.  You can cover the work you have done.  You could even give some notes on one of your most memorable visits or tasks as Santa.   Personal stories from your life are one of those special moments at a memorial. 

8. I would like to recommend something that is popular for many memorial services.  That is, having some large photos of yourself displayed for all to see.  In this way everyone sees you as they remember, in your youth, with family, your wedding, photos with children and grandchildren, in the military and of course, in your holiday attire.

9. Another option that some funeral homes now offer is a video presentation or power point slide show of photos from your life.   Today, everyone in our generation has lots of photos from our past to the present.  So, it does make it a lot easier.    Whether it is large photos or a slide show, if this is you, I suggest that you start collecting those photos you would like everyone to see.  Put them in a file or digital file your family can find or put them on a thumb drive and put it in the folder.

As we get older, it is inevitable that our circle of fellow Santas and Mrs. Claus will get smaller.  Every so often we are touched by the loss of a loved one.  Or we hear of a friend, or a Santa or Mrs. Claus that has taken their last sleigh ride.   

For many, this is not something we wish to dwell upon. It is the Autumn of our lives, and we know that somewhere, sometime, we will be called. But until that time arrives, we can go about what we love to do best, bringing joy to others!

Click here to read, “The Last Sleigh Ride.”
by Santa By Philip D. Gurganus.

Click here for Protocols for a Kringle Funeral,
Memorial or Celebration of Life. (DRAFT) 

Again, these are my own thoughts.  Should you have some suggestions or know of something that was done for one of our other Santas, please let me know: Santa@NationalSanta.com

This will be a work in progress.   And also please feel free to share anything here with your friends and fellow Santas and Mrs. Claus.