About Santa Lee

The first time Santa Lee donned the red suit was a few years back when he was a nursing assistant at an assisted living facility. They asked him to be Santa for their Christmas party for the residents and employees. He readily agreed. He put on their costume-shop rental Santa suit, beard, and wig, went about visiting with these elderly people whom he had worked with for a while and had come to love. He made quite the impression on many of the residents and even more so on the children of some of the employees that were present.

The biggest impression made, however, was on Santa Lee. After he'd handed out the gifts to all the residents out in the common areas, he started making the rounds handing out the gifts to those who were bed-bound and couldn't come out to the party. There was one particular lady who was a "total care patient." She was bed-bound and completely disoriented. She had not been able to speak sensibly for a long time. Santa walked into her room, patted her softly on the arm to get her attention, presented her with her gift, and told her, "Merry Christmas," calling her by name.

Her eyes widened, her face lit up, and she said, "Hey, Santa Claus! I haven't seen you in a long time!" Santa Lee was nearly floored. It was at that moment that he realized the true depth and power of the magic of Santa Claus.

Remembering that occasion, in 2007, Santa Lee decided that he wanted, once again, to be Santa. He purchased my own suit, wig, beard, and boots. He even recruited his long-suffering wife to be Mrs. Claus and his 17-year-old sister to be Emily the Elf. Together they visited Pioneer Community Hospital in Aberdeen, the renal and pediatric floors of the North Mississippi Medical Center, a day care, an elementary school, and made one especially memorable home visit. For the day care and elementary school visits, Santa Lee incorporated a little amateur magic and "made a reindeer fly!"

Santa Lee says, "Being Santa gives a person a feeling that nothing else in the world can exactly match. The way people react, both adults and especially children, is simply magical. There's not a lot of real magic left in this world, but I know that the look on the face of a child that glows with their happiness and their belief in Santa and the magic of Christmas is nothing short of just that -- magic."

Christmas 2009, Santa Lee gets his first chance to "be Santa Claus" in a whole different way. He and his wife were blessed by the birth of their first child, Aurora Dawn, in February.