Along with certain other holiday traditions (gingerbread men!), one of our favorites is hearing about big-hearted people taking on the job of helping Santa. These “Secret Santas” work in their communities to make spirits bright, doing everything from handing out cash to strangers to stuffing donation boxes. Who’s to say they’re not really Santa?
To get you in the giving mood, we’ve rounded up some of the do-gooders’ deeds so far this year:
1. In Kansas City, an unnamed citizen is being called Secret Santa II for taking over the generosity after the town’s long time big guy, Larry Stewart, passed away in 2007. Last week he hit thrift stores, homeless shelters and food pantries, looking for neighbors experiencing tight times, and handed out $10,000 in $100 bills. He hopes to give out $40,000 before the new year.
2. In Detroit, a couple of anonymous Santas also relied on $100 bills to spread holiday cheer. Turns out they, too, were inspired by Larry Stewart, the original giver in Kansas City. For their third year in a row, they passed out money at locations including the Ronald McDonald House, the Salvation Army and a city bus where each of the 20 or so passengers got $100 and high fives from fellow riders.
3. Yet another student of Stewart’s resides in Phoenix, where two retired FBI agents take on the task of distributing the anonymous donor’s crisp $100 bills. People in Goodwill stores and Greyhound bus stations were surprised and thankful to get them this year.
4. In Joplin, Mo., a longtime Secret Santa takes a more indirect route, dropping large sums into the Salvation Army’s red kettle. Recently, five folded up $1 bills in the kettle each contained a cashier’s check for $20,000. The $100,000 donation brings this anonymous donor’s grand total to $450,000. The need is great; the local Salvation Army cared for 898 families in 2010, including 1,500 children.
5. Someone with a green thumb, not a red suit, has been trimming a giant tree on the side of the Garden State Parkway in Little Egg Harbor Township, N.J. For years, the decorator has gradually added ornaments and tinsel as Christmas neared. One year, when a Scrooge (or the wind) started swiping ornaments, the mysterious tree-trimmer just kept adding them. Catch a glimpse at mile marker 58.2.
Photo by pinguino via Flickr.