Helicopter stands in for sleigh, reindeer
Robbinsville – Santa Claus carved out time from his busy December schedule to make two appearances in Robbinsville over the past week.
Mr. Claus’ visits were facilitated by Bob Keber of Robbinsville.
The Jolly Old Elf’s sled wasn’t available and his reindeer were with the farrier, so he summoned an Erlanger Life Force helicopter on Dec. 15, for a visit to Robbinsville Elementary School.
Emergency services providers act as a kind of Uber for Claus from November through early-January, providing him transportation with fire engines, ambulances, military vehicles and on Dec. 15, a medical-evacuation helicopter.
The Life Force helicopter made a wide circle around Robbinsville and landed on the 50-yard line at Big Oaks Stadium behind the elementary school precisely when Claus meant to – a few minutes after 1 p.m.
Claus trims his beard after Christmas season – as a courtesy to Mrs. Claus – but by Dec. 15, it was ready for Christmas, negating the need to wear a fake beard like he does at shopping malls and early-Christmas parades.
Filling the home team side at Big Oaks Stadium were just about every elementary school-age child in Graham County, along with staff and teachers.
Claus has a legendary ability to defy physics, which he uses to manufacture billions of Christmas gifts in just a year, deliver presents all over the world in just 36 hours (accounting for the International Date Line), and somehow tame rare and elusive flying reindeer. He used that ability to amplify cheers from a crowd of a few hundred, to slightly over 1 jillion – just shy of deafening.
Claus exited the chopper and was greeted by Graham County Sheriff Brad Hoxit, who gave the VIP visitor a ride to the reception area on the back of a tactical golf cart painted metallic red.
Hoxit provided security and crowd control during the visit, as throngs crowded around the ageless elf, asking for favored Christmas gifts or just wanting to be near him.
The younger children were smitten, while the older children were more reserved, perhaps not wanting to let on that they still believed.
Following that age group-appropriate dip, enthusiasm rose again as it reached teacher, staff and sheriff age.
The children stood in line patiently – but fidgety – as Claus visited with each of them grouped by classroom. Parents and teachers took a few pictures and videos, with some taking selfies of themselves and Mr. Claus.
On Monday morning, Claus made another visit in Robbinsville, this time to Head Start preschoolers at the Graham County Sheriff’s Office headquarters, where he met up with Hoxit once again. He also stopped by The Graham Star office on Tallulah Road to pick up this year’s Letters to Santa, which can be found elsewhere in this edition.
Later, Claus continued on to prepare for the big day on Sunday, Dec. 25 – Christmas day.
Then, after a two-week break, he’ll do it again on Jan. 7, for Orthodox Christmas.
He said he enjoyed his visit to Robbinsville and expects to return late next year.