The spirit of Christmas was in the air Saturday morning as hundreds of Edmontonians lined up for the annual 630 CHED Santas Anonymous delivery day.
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This year, the organization is handing out gifts to approximately 24,000 children in 9,000 families in the city, according to executive director Lana Nordlund.
Delivery day is a long-standing tradition in Edmonton, with some volunteers lining up for hours, even before doors officially open.
This year, all 9,000 packages were out the door just before 3 p.m., something Nordlund said hasn’t happened in a while.
“It’s been a couple of years since we’ve done that. It’s been absolutely amazing. But we will still have some that we have to try a second time — people who weren’t home today — so we will still be doing deliveries Sunday starting at 9:30 a.m.”
Nordlund said it was because most of the 1,200 or so volunteers came out a little earlier this year.
Rebecca Ratcliffe and her husband were the first people in line; the pair arrived at 6 a.m.
“We like to be first in line so that we can be the first ones out delivering,” she said. “We try to take about 15 to 20 packages every year.”
“If we get a good start in the morning, we have the whole day to deliver.”
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Ratcliffe said she has done delivery day for Santas Anonymous for years.
“I started doing this with my dad when I was little and now my husband and I have done it for the about the last five years,” she said.
“I just think it’s such an important thing to do. We’re very fortunate. We have a lot of things in our lives and it’s really nice to be able to give to people that don’t.”
Ratcliffe, an assistant principal, said she sees the impact delivery day can have on children.
“I see a lot of children who have benefitted over the years from receiving gifts through Santas Anonymous so it’s nice for us to be able to give back,” she said.
A few spots behind her in line was Meredith Weldon, who is delivering presents for the second year in a row.
The volunteer said her first year doing deliveries left quite an impression on her.
“There was two families that stood out for me. One of them was not what I was expecting when they opened the door. They were in their winter coats and didn’t really have much,” she said.
“The other one was a single dad and he made his kids come say ‘thank you’ to me. [He] was all excited when I went to the door. He was waiting on the third-floor apartment watching out his window and when I pulled out, you could see his smile from the third floor.”
The crowd steadily grew throughout the morning and the mood was jovial as Santa and Mrs. Claus made their way through the crowds, thanking people for helping out.
There was also a sea of Santa hats, elf caps and other festive headwear.
“It’s a wonderful feeling to have so many of Santa’s elves and helpers come out,” said Santa Claus.
“Everybody’s happy to be here. They’re happy to give their time to Santas [Anonymous]. It makes it warm for me.”
Brent Fullerton and his daughter Danika stood in line for the first time to help deliver presents to children in Edmonton who may not otherwise get a gift.
“[It’s] pretty surreal so far – it’s not very often you get a lineup of people anywhere where everybody’s smiling and joyful.”
Rob McCormack and wife Kat Foster were also lining up for the first time, and they did so with style – the family dressed up in elf costumes for the occasion.
“It’s that time of year to give back to those in need.”
630 CHED Santas Anonymous was founded in 1955 by Jerry Forbes, and his son says his dad would be amazed at how much it’s grown.
Marty Forbes said every year, he’s moved by the sight of all the volunteers helping out.
“When it’s 37 years that he’s been gone and you’re operating out of building that would be named after him, it’s double the effect.
“And I’ve learned over the last number of years, I just kind of go into a different mode, I just plow forward and then I get home, then I cry like the baby,” Forbes said.
He knows exactly what his dad would say if he could see the bustling Santas warehouse now.
“There’d be no possible way to explain the magnitude of this to him but he always did exactly the same thing. ‘Don’t thank me, don’t thank the radio station, thank the people of Edmonton, thank your neighbour, thank goodness that you’re paying it forward to kids so that the next generation is picking up.’ That’s how he always operated.”
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Staff counted down the seconds to 9:30 a.m., when the doors officially opened.
Then, the volunteers streamed through the depot, getting processed and picking up bags of presents to deliver.
Nordlund said it was heartwarming to see the lineups and the crowds.
“This is phenomenal to see everybody out today,” she said.
“It’s hard to put it in words – the amount of love, the amount of compassion, the amount of wanting to give back, to teach your children it doesn’t take much.”
Delivery weekend continues on Sunday for any undelivered gifts.
Nordlund said there are roughly 1,000 packages that still need to be delivered to kids in need.
She added anyone who would like to help out should show up right at 9:30 Sunday morning, since the packages should move fast.
Santas Depot is located at 12122 68 Street.
– With files from 630 CHED’s Kyle Morris and Morgan Smith