Thanks to the commercialism of Christmas, Santa and his helpers can be seen everywhere - in yards, in stores, on Christmas cards, in movies or waving at them in a parade. And thanks to the 88-year-old CWH (Charles W. Howard) Santa Claus School in Midland, some people can actually “become” Santa. The school holds a “certification” course every October and this year volunteer Santa, Darrell Hansen of Orchard View, was finally able to attend.
Hansen, a very active Shelby American Legion member and volunteer Santa Claus over the years, said he first heard about the school from the Department of Veterans Affairs office in Hart. “I never realized there was a school until a couple of years ago. It took me two years to get in,” he said.
The Santa Claus School, founded in 1937, claims the title as the “oldest Santa School in the world” and is referred to by some as “the Harvard of Santa schools.” As stated on their website, their mission is, “To uphold the traditions and preserve the history of Santa Claus while providing students with the necessary resources to improve and further define their presentations of Santa and Mrs. Claus, allowing them to enter the hearts and spread the Christmas spirit to everyone they meet.”
“It (Santa School) was very interesting,” Hansen said. “There were 285 other attendees, from skinny to big people, and from all over the world!”
The Santa School curriculum includes three days of workshops and activities designed to help participants hone their Santa skills. Students get help with how to look like Santa, how to dress like Santa, how to take care of their beard, or where to find a good artificial one. They get a chance to “feel” like Santa by practicing their ho-ho-ho-ing, storytelling, singing and how to remember the names of all of Santa’s reindeer.
“I never sang as many Santa and Christmas songs as I did that weekend,” mused Hansen. “At the beginning of each class we had to stand and sing a song.”
Most importantly, attendees can learn how to “be” Santa to everyone, no matter their age, ability or background. “We had psychiatrists that came to speak about the different ways people perceive Santa and gave us tips on how to understand where people were coming from. High school students came and interviewed us and asked why we were there,” said Hansen.
They even have a class on how to handle the financial aspect of being Santa if they were offering their services for a fee. “I’m a volunteer only. Everyone has their own niche or reason. But for me, I’m not in it to make a dollar. The only payment I need is seeing someone smile or maybe get a hug once in a while. It’s all about giving at this point in my life.”
At the end of three days, an actual graduation banquet is held where the students receive their certificates of achievement and have their photo taken with the school’s director, Tom Valent.
Since returning from Midland, Hansen has been studying other Santas and has made three visits to the salon to get his hair and beard ready. He was beyond excited to go to the Oceana County Medical Care Facility and Cherry Blossom Manor Christmas morning on Wednesday, where he and his sister planned to make a visit to every resident who wanted one, and bring them a little treat and an extra dose of Christmas cheer.
“As they told us numerous times in class, ‘It’s not the suit that makes you Santa; it’s what is in your heart,’” Hansen concluded. It was obvious after interviewing Hansen he has one thing no school could ever teach…a big heart, and our community is a better place because of it.
