My wife once asked me why I'm so crazy about Santa. Well, I told her that goes way back to my chidhood and I just never grew out of it like so many people do.

First, Christmas to me is absolutly the most wonderful time of the year, I love it. I love the lights, the song's, the food, the giving of gift's, etc.... but what I love the most is celebrating the birth of Jesus my Savior. He is the ultimate gift !

Now Santa to me just inbodies everything about Christmas that I love. I've always believed in Santa and what he means to so many people all around the world. When I am Santa I love to see the the smiles and the love and hope in the children's eye's. When I was a child I remember my heart beating with excitement as I waited to see and talk to Santa.

During the Christmas season I'll walk through different malls, stores, ect... to watch Santa's interacting with their visitor's just to relive in my mind those times when I visited Santa when I was a child.

I think I knew from an early age that one day I would put on the red suit myself. The first time I "dressed" up as Santa I was about thirteen, I think. I made a suit out of everything I could find. An old jacket and red pajama bottoms became my suit and I ripped the stuffing out of an old sleeping bag to fashion a beard and mustache to finish the look. My mom took pictures but I have no idea where they are now.

In 2003 I decided it was time to finally become Santa. It was Christmas eve and I arrived at our house and suprised my son, it was a great moment when he greeted me at the door with his mom. He was in total shock ! He just stood there and stared at me in disbelief, it truly was a great moment. Eventually I did get to enter the house to visit with him and give him and his older sister a gift. Needless to say after that I was totaly hooked and now I just want to continue to be all I can be to my family and others as I portray tne jolly old elf