Where do the letters to Santa Go?

Where do the letters to Santa Go? - A thought for the holidays!  The Post office response.....

As we are in the holiday season, have you ever considered where all the letters to Santa really go, do they go to the North Pole?  Is the man in a red suit surrounded by little people reading all his mail?  May be.

Recently I read an article in the local paper that explains some of what happens to the mail that many children send to Santa.

Letters to Santa – “Operation Santa”

• How Operation Santa Started

  The U.S. Postal Service® began receiving letters to Santa Claus more than 100 years ago.  However, it was in 1912 that Postmaster General Frank Hitchcock authorized local postmasters to allow Postal employees and citizens to respond to the letters in the program that became affectionately known as Operation Santa. 

  Over the past 60 years, the program has taken on a life of its own. Cities around the country have successful programs working with recognized charitable organizations, major corporations, local businesses and postal employees making a major difference in the lives of children from coast to coast.

  New York City’s Operation Santa program is the largest public adoption Post Office in the country, receiving more than a half million letters a season. With that much Santa Mail it stands to reason they need the public’s help. Every year the iconic James A. Farley Building on Eighth Avenue is visited by tens of thousands of people who come in person to adopt letters. Its tradition for a kick-off celebration to be held, usually during the first week of December announcing to the public they can visit, read the letters, and perhaps assist Santa with his work. The New York City program has changed very little since the 1940s when it was first opened to the public and continues to thrive much to the delight of both the writers and readers of letters to Santa to this day.

• What We Do

  This year, 2012, the Postal Service™ is celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Letters to Santa Program as it continues to fulfill the dreams of children nationwide. The Postal Service has Letters to Santa programs in operation around the country. In the vast number of locations, postal employees respond to the letters by providing a written response signed by Santa. Other Post Offices may work with local schools, municipalities and community groups who volunteer for the joyous task. Still other Post Offices work with established groups and charities who in kind respond in writing or by actually fulfilling the wishes of the letter writer. Each year, however, in select Post Offices the general public is invited to “adopt” Santa letters.
  In all locations were the public may adopt letters written to St. Nick, uniform security guidelines must be adhered to. Any member of the public choosing to adopt a letter may simply respond in writing or if they so choose, grant the wish, a decision completely left up to the individual Santa’s helper.

• Guidelines

  In 2006, national policy guidelines were created regarding the handling and adoption of letters addressed to Santa. These guidelines were designed to protect the children who wrote to Santa and mandated that individuals wishing to adopt letters must do so in person, present valid photo identification and fill out a form that includes the list of letters being adopted.

  In 2009, the Postal Service changed the letter adoption process by blacking out all reference to the child’s address and assigning the letter a number. Individuals interested in adopting letters go to a Post Office, select the letter(s) and sign the form. When the individual is all set to fulfill the child’s wishes, he or she returns with the letter and/or item he or she is mailing and brings items to a postal employee. The postal employee will match the number on the letter with the child’s address and weigh the package. The individual will pay for postage, and the Postal Service will print a mailing label and apply it to the package without the customer seeing the child’s address.

• Letters to Santa Writing Kit

  This year, the Postal Service is offering a Letters to Santa Writing Kit that includes everything your child needs to write a letter to Santa, including crayons, stationery, envelopes, and stickers. The writing kit features artwork derived from the Santa and Sleigh (Forever®) stamps which were released on October 11, 2012.

  For more information on the Letters to Santa Writing Kit, visit the Holiday Store on USPS.com®.
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