We all love Christmas. The birth of Jesus, the celebration of our faith, the joy of family and friends gathered together in the spirit of the season- it’s all so wonderful. Who loves Christmas most of all? Of course, children do, and, well, Santa Claus. What could be better than making a child’s Christmas better, as Santa does, even when they are facing challenges during the special season of Christmas?
You have the opportunity to make a child’s Christmas better, and all it takes is helping out Santa Joe Slifer and his elves. Each year, the Duke Children’s Hospital ministry distributes gifts generously donated by our parishioners through the St. Francis Giving Trees during Advent to children facing health issues and their siblings, at a time of year when they should be celebrating Christmas with joy in their hearts. Santa Joe and Mrs. Claus, also known as Joe’s wife, Geanie, set up in the hospital lobby, complete with a Santa chair and a backdrop for photos.
Santa Joe, a fixture at this event for years and a several-time attendee of the World Santa Claus Congress in Denmark, knows ‘Santas’ from around the world and is kind of a big deal! As you would expect of Santa, though, he is humble and focuses on the children. “Being Santa at the Duke Children’s Hospital,” says Santa Joe, “is kind of a ‘double emotion situation.’ One, it is an honor, a privilege, and it absolutely warms your heart to be Santa for the children. You have smiles galore, and excitement when they glimpse Santa, and that is a real plus. On the other end of the spectrum, it pulls at Santa Claus’s and Mrs. Claus’s heart that these children are facing health issues. We pray on the way over there every time: ‘Please, God, don’t let me cry until I’m on the way home,’ and that has worked so far.”
Gilbert Pena, his wife Mel, and Erin Pearson are elves for Santa and help set up the event each year. Gilbert enjoys his role, especially how he sees it affect the kids: “We are in the lobby of Duke Children’s Hospital, the kids are coming in for appointments, which are not much fun, and all of a sudden they see Santa Claus! Their eyes just go wide. The person coming from upstairs to take them to their appointment tries to say, ‘Why don’t you wait until after the appointment?’ Well, the kid doesn’t want to wait; they want to talk to Santa! It is so powerful, so powerful.”
“The children who are old enough to understand the challenges they face,” says Santa Joe, “are scared. Even if they’re not old enough to know what’s going on, they’re still frightened, and their parents are even more frightened than the children because they know the impact of whatever situation the child is going through. To be able to give them a moment of happiness- yeah, that is what keeps us going back. We feel like we’re really doing something in support of God’s work.”
Elf Gilbert adds, “Oftentimes, the parents come to the hospital with their child and often a sibling or siblings. The question that people struggle with is, ‘Should we be giving presents to the siblings?’ I’m going to answer that question for you with a strong ‘yes!’” How can anyone limit access to Santa? Seems like a silly question. “When we put up our list of suggested numbers of presents,” he says, “it should be big, because when you ask, ‘How does the St. Francis community model their faith?’ The answer is the St. Francis Parish family gives, and gives, and gives. All you have to do is ask.”
This ministry offers a meaningful way to extend our parish community’s love and support to families facing medical challenges during the holiday season. The ministry is currently seeking a new ministry leader who is excited to work with Santa and his elves. To find out more, reach out to Gilbert Pena Jgilbertpena@gmail.com or Erin Pearson at efp@freypearson.com. Supporting Santa and his elves is easy; all you have to do is take an ornament off the Giving Tree to support the Duke Children’s Hospital Ministry. Look for the trees during Advent and know you are brightening a child’s Christmas when you choose an ornament and return the gift!