For some children, going to visit Santa for the first time at the mall can be intimidating. But what’s even scarier than the sight of Old St. Nick is the things you can’t see. Germs and crowds are particularly risky for children with compromised immune systems.
For parents Vanessa Lorrain and Steven Foss, they have to do everything they can to protect their two-year-old son, Oliver, from getting sick.
“He has chronic lung disease and asthma. He’s had three brain surgeries in the two years he’s been alive,” Lorrain said. “We try to keep him away from getting sick because he’s already spending enough time in hospital.”
The NorthernStar Mother’s Milk Bank, is used to working with vulnerable babies. The charity provides milk for premature and sick babies. They recognized a need to provide a safe and sterile environment for the immunocompromised. They invited Santa to their facility to give families an experience they might never have had.
“He’s been through so much and to get to do something special like this, it’s just really nice,” Lorrain said.
Krista Wunsch came with her eight-month-old son Cooper. She said the cherished memory is just not an option for him.
“Being amongst hoards of people in public can be tricky for someone trying to gain weight and catching up to his peers, without the milk bank we wouldn’t haven been able to visit Santa,” Wunsch said.
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“It’s an awesome opportunity for his first Christmas.”
NorthernStar executive director Jannette Festival plans on making this an annual event.
“It’s very moving. It’s something so simple that we don’t think about,” Festival said. “So many of these children and families have spent months and years and want to go someplace outside of the hospital. The milk bank is a safe place and made sense for us to do it.”
Jake Beaumont and Hailey Lepine are parents to twin girls, Georgia and Nora. The two were born premature. Beaumont said it’s been a rough five months for these girls, so the gift of this photo session isn’t taken for granted.
“When it comes to getting out in the big wide world, we have to be incredibly careful with everything,” Beaumont said.
“It is an incredibly rare opportunity for us to get out of the house and be a normal family for the day.”
Sandra Miller Reynolds with Shutterbean Photography donated her talents for the day.
“These are memories they couldn’t have unless we brought Santa to them,” Miller Reynolds said. “It’s magic, it’s truly magic. My daughter is immunocompromised, she’s a severe asthmatic. Mall Santa photos aren’t for us either, so it is really rewarding.”
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