Santa Takes Action
By Marty P.
This is a Two Part story. See Part One under the December 2011 photo, titled: Letters from Santa
~~~~
It was during morning coffee that Roy DeSoto, Chet Kelly, and Johnny Gage began a heated discussion. Chet started it, “Look, Gage, I tried to figure out how to answer to those kids. I mean, what do you tell a kid who wants her mommy to have a baby?”
“Mine are harder than that, Chet,” Johnny nudged the Irish fireman, causing his beverage to slosh. “Sam’s worried about his family cuz his dad’s in Viet Nam.” A stare-down occurred.
Chet raised his index finger, “The point is; I don’t wanna make promises that disappoint kids.”
Johnny concurred, “I feel the same way, but I spoke to Bobbie and she said she’d figure something out.”
Roy, who’d been taking in the conversation, gazed at his colleagues, “Guys, Joanne and I talked about this last night. We both feel we hafta be part of the solution.”
“Great idea, Roy, but how?” Chet waited for the father figure to enlighten them. He saw the time; they had five minutes until their official duties began.
Roy pursed his lips, “Mariana wants an Easy Bake Oven. That’s over $10.00. Then there’s Salvador. He asked for a GI Joe, and those are pricey, too. Joanne talked about us buying one toy, and seeing if other people would be willing to help out.”
“That might work,” Johnny agreed. “But, I see two problems; we don’t have much time to do all this, how do we handle those that aren’t toys or food, and how do we coordinate it all?”
“That’s three problems, Johnny,” Chet had been counting on his fingers.
The paramedic shrugged, “Whatever. I like your idea, Roy, but the whole thing’s overwhelming.”
“Then we’ll just have to get more people involved, and fast,” Roy dumped his lukewarm brew.
Captain Stanley, who’d caught Roy’s comment, raised his eyebrows, “Elucidate, Roy, what has to be solved quickly?”
“Fulfilling Santa’s wishes for the children at Broadacres Avenue School,” Johnny answered for his workmate, as he inspected the shine on his boots.
The head of the station mumbled, “I want to be part of that resolution.”
Several hours later, the members of Station 51 had an opportunity to discuss the school children. The table’s surface was covered with the first graders’ writings. “We better complete those letters we promised Johnny’s school teacher first.” Hank Stanley saw an acknowledgement of affirmation from the others.
“Cap, how ‘bout this?” Roy proffered. “After you finish with each one, we’ll put it in a big stack and begin a list.”
“Better make that two,” Chet chimed in. “You know what I mean, stuff you can buy. And one for the things that are hard to purchase.”
“They aren’t all cut and dried,” Johnny sorted through his, retrieving Duke’s. “He wants a puppy and a friend.”
“Maybe the dog could be both,” Marco suggested. “On the other hand, we all need friends.”
“I wanna help,” Mike Stoker emitted a heavy breath. “But I don’t think we can go around buying animals for people. Ricardo, one of mine, wants a fish. We don’t know what their lives or homes are like.”
“So, what are you saying, Mike?” Johnny’s voice rang with disappointment, “just get ‘em a lame Hot Wheel car or a jump rope?”
“Of course not, John!” Mike retorted, “This whole thing is complicated!”
“Mike makes a good point, Johnny,” the captain defused the situation. “Much as we’d like to, we won’t be able to cross everything off.”
A call came in, dispatching the paramedics. Squad 51. Six year old female with seizures. Child has cerebral palsy. Address: 1417 Bay Street, cross street Cedar.
The first responders quickly made a right turn out of the station and were on their way. “Cerebral palsy, that’s a tough disease for the whole family.” Roy glanced into the side mirror before changing lanes.
Johnny adjusted his chin strap. “And seizures are always tough, especially on the parents. They feel so helpless.”
Conversation ceased until Johnny leaned forward, “Over on the left, that white house with the blue shutters.”
“Got it,” Roy paused to make sure an advancing Buick pulled over, and then he put on his blinker and parked in front of the home.
As they prepared their equipment, the mother joined them at the curb. “Grace is doing much better. My husband is with her.”
“Glad to hear that, ma’am, we’ll check her out anyway,” Johnny gave her a reassuring smile as they entered through the open door.
In the den, a man knelt beside his still daughter. She wore a ruffled white blouse with a gingham jumper and her brunette braids sported ribbons matching the jumper. “They recently changed her medication, as she was having so much muscle pain.”
“How many seizures did she have and how long did they last?” Roy tested the biocom, readying it for communication with the hospital.
The husband looked to his wife for confirmation. “About four or five and the last one lasted over a minute and really scared us.”
“Did she bump into anything during them?” Johnny viewed the quilts spread around the motionless girl as he proceeded to take her blood pressure.
Her mother’s voice wobbled, “I don’t think so. I hope she didn’t hurt herself.”
“We’ll take good care of her,” Roy said with compassion. “How are things looking, Johnny?”
“Her vitals are good, no difficulty breathing, but we’d like to take her into Rampart to get evaluated.”
“Yes, we’d like that, too,” the father squeezed his daughter’s hand. “Poor Grace, she’s been through so much.”
“I’ll see if the ambulance is here,” Roy disappeared, after receiving word from the hospital to keep the patient comfortable and transport her.
Johnny, wishing to put the parents at ease, asked, “Do you have other children?”
“Yes, two, a boy and girl, both older than Grace. They are with their grandparents.” The mother snuggled against her husband as he put his arm around her shoulder.
The dad gazed at his daughter with love, “I was glad I wasn’t at work today so Gloria didn’t deal with this alone.”
“I can imagine,” Johnny expressed his sympathy. “Where do you work?” The front door thudded as Roy returned with the ambulance attendants. They carefully transferred the youngster, and Roy assisted the mother into the back of the wagon.
At the sidewalk, the man answered Johnny’s question. “I’m a manager at Broadway Department Store.”
“Mr….Roskins?” Johnny searched his memory. “Oh, that’s right. You were at Santa’s booth in the mall.”
“Is it okay if I follow you to the hospital?” Mr. Roskin jangled his keys in his pants pocket.
Johnny scooted the drugbox into its berth and twisted the latch to lock it. “Of course, and, we can stay with you for a few minutes unless we get another call.”
At the hospital, Johnny caught sight of the head nurse, Dixie McCall at the base station. “Room 4, Roy should be out in a minute.”
Roy emerged, conversing with Mrs. Roskins, “They’ll take good care of her. The doctors here have a lot of experience with Cerebral Palsy.”
“Mrs. Roskins? Your husband is in the waiting room,” Johnny steered her to the receptionist’s desk where he was completing paperwork. Johnny and Roy made small talk until the clipboard was signed and relinquished.
Johnny brought up the topic on his mind, “Mr. Roskins, you gave me your business card and told me to contact you if I needed help.”
“Melanie’s back at work,” he saw the paramedics question each other, “the Santa photographer. We worked it out so she can stay seated to snap pictures.”
“Glad to hear it,” Johnny returned to what he’d started saying, “We could use your help. You see, the station wants to give the first grade students at Broadacres Avenue Elementary a special Christmas.”
“What did you have in mind?” Mr. Roskins appeared interested.
Roy picked up the ball, “Originally, we were just going to answer the kids’ letters to Santa. But all of us felt we could do more.”
“What kind of things did the children want?” Gloria Roskins folded her hands in her lap and waited.
Johnny probed his memory, “Some are for certain toys, candy, food, and clothing, but there are others that are more involved like their parent needing a job, or being worried about loved ones.”
“Sounds like it’s quite a bit for your station to handle, I’ll talk to corporate and see if we lend a hand.” Mr. Roskins handed over another business card.
Johnny took it, and placed it in his wallet, “thanks. I hope we can work with you. This is bigger than we can handle but we don’t want to relinquish it.”
“Good,” Mr. Roskins shook their hands, “The store has a policy of working jointly with others and folks need to come to us first. And, please, call me Terry.”
“Roskins?” An authoritative voice from the main desk announced, “The doctor will see you now.”
“I’ll call you in a few days,” Johnny said as the couple went to hear news of their daughter’s condition. On the way back to quarters, the paramedic babbled on with enthusiasm.
As they left the squad and trekked into the kitchen, Roy greeted everyone, “We may be able to pull off acting as Santas, thanks to Johnny.”
“Well, it wasn’t really me,” John washed his hands and grabbed a towel. “It was the dad on our last call. He works at Broadway Department Store and they like to partner with Christmas projects like ours.”
“Pretty amazing, when you consider the fact the family deals with their youngest having cerebral palsy,” Roy commented, skimming his mail. Victor wanted someone to play baseball with him and bring a bat and ball. It made him grateful for his family, even his nagging mother-in-law.
Mike Stoker slid the legal pad with the lists, such as they were. “Are you saying we plop the whole thing in someone else’s lap?”
“No, Terry, uh, Mr. Roskins made it very clear that we need to participate.” Johnny fielded the question. “And, this isn’t a done deal; he has to speak to the bosses.”
Marco stirred the stewpot, preparing supper, “Seems to me we better decide when we are going to do this.”
“I guess I better check with Bobbie,” Johnny dug in his pocket for a dime and plinked it into the payphone. He returned, “The secretary said she was at recess and couldn’t come to the phone. I’ll try to reach her later.”
“Are we talking about some kind of party, you know where we hand out stuff?” Chet sniffed the air, “That smells good, Marco.”
“That’s a good question, Chet.” Captain took over the decision-making, “Everyone in favor of giving the kids a bash with food and gifts raise your hand.” He made a quick tally, seeing all hands in the air. “We better discuss…”
“Some of them didn’t ask for a toy. What about them, Cap?” Johnny migrated to the sofa to stroke their resident four-legged couch potato, Henry.
Hank Stanley watched the paramedic’s actions, “I know we want to do everything, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves. There’s a limit of what we, as a department, can handle.”
“Or we could all pitch in a certain amount of money, and see what that would buy,” Roy recommended.
The crew chief paused, “I like it, Roy. Now, Mike, would you get that calendar off the wall and bring it over here? I suggest we propose a few days that might work.” He poked his finger on several and, after inspecting the bulletin board for conflicts announced, “Seems like either the 17th, ten days from now, or the 19th would be best.”
“I’ll try Bobbie again,” Johnny made his way to the payphone. This time he got through. The others eavesdropped on his side of the conversation. Turning to face the crew, his lips stretched into a satisfied smile, “Bobbie says she’ll chat with the other teacher but either date should work.”
“Does that mean we are on for the 17th?” Chet’s head swiveled toward the captain.
“Not necessarily,” Jonny replied. I’ll call Mr. Roskins tomorrow. “In the meantime, I guess we should finish the letters.” After some contemplation, he chose not to give false hope on his, instead, including the phrase, ‘I’ll see what I can do’, closing each with Santa’s name. He’d give them to Bobbie tomorrow night when they went bowling. The others handed in their messages and he slid them into an oversize folder.
~~~~
The following morning, after his shower and workout, John slipped Mr. Roskins’ business card out of his wallet. He dialed the number, not sure how the man could help with what the guys had titled this project OSB: Operation Santa Broadacres. The switchboard operator had a friendly voice, “Broadway Department Store, how may I help you?”
“Mr. Terence Roskins, please,” he stared down at the scratch pad he’d brought home, which showed each child’s desire.
After a brief pause, the woman on the other end stated, “I’ll page him. He’s seldom in his office. Please hold.”
“Hello?”
“Hi, my name is John Gage, I’m a paramedic with the Los Angeles County Fire Department…”
“Is everything okay? Is it Gloria, or Grace?” Mr. Roskins began to panic.
John, grasping where the man’s mind was headed, rushed to console him, “Oh, no sir, I’m not contacting you about them. When we met, you offered to speak to your superiors about helping…”
“Oh, yes, I came in early to talk to Brad Patrick, the head of outreach for the stores; he sounded very interested in us partnering with you but said he needed further details.”
“Is it possible we could get together today?” Johnny threw out. “I know its short notice.”
“Sure, can you come in at 10:30?”
“I’ll be there, the guys at Station 51 and I really appreciate this.” Johnny heard the click of the connection terminating. It might be wise to see if any of his coworkers could accompany him. After phoning everyone, Mike Stoker was the only member available and he would need to leave at 11:15. Aware of his patched jeans and worn, red and white plaid shirt, John changed into a newer pair of Levis, and a plain, button-up cranberry shirt. He slicked down his hair with a comb.
At 10:20 a.m Johnny parked next to Mike’s coupe and the two men made their way to the back of the department store where Mr. Roskins had his office. Introductions and greetings exchanged, they settled into the topic which brought them together. Johnny described the firefighters answering the first graders’ letters to Santa and Mike interrupted, “It just seemed empty to not do anything. I wouldn’t want to receive a lame letter from Santa and then have it be a ‘dead letter’ so to speak.”
“Well said.” The manager examined the register and then folded his hands, placing them on top of the yellow lined paper. “I can see you started organizing but Broadway’s policy is that we don’t take over your project, we work in tandem with you. What are your plans?”
“Well, we thought maybe we could collect money and go shopping for some of the items. “We’d like to do something for everyone, but we aren’t sure how, exactly.”
“And, we thought a small celebration for the kids, and maybe their families would be nice. We came up with a few dates that would work.” Mike Stoker sat up straighter, “It’s obvious we haven’t thought this through fully. But we want to do as much as we can.”
“Okay, let’s start a checklist.” Terry grabbed a piece of stationery with the Broadway Logo on it.
Date
Venue
Refreshments
Invitations
Gifts
Santa
“That sounds about right. It’s a start anyway.” John assented, studying the family photo on the man’s desk.
“Mr. Roskins, could I play Santa? I have a suit already.” Mike saw Johnny’s look of surprise.
Terry added Mike Stoker’s name next to Santa, “I don’t see why not.”
“Thank you,” Mike got to his feet, “I apologize; I have another obligation so I need to leave. I’m sure Johnny will keep the crew apprised.”
After the door closed behind Mike, Terry dropped into chair vacated by Mike, so that both men could peruse the children’s wants. Johnny pointed to Susie’s, I could talk to the nurse in charge of the ER at Rampart Hospital and see if there’s a way her mom could work on different shift. It’s worth a try.” But, as they studied some other items Johnny’s frustration grew. “I’m afraid we are really going to disappoint some of the kids. I mean, we don’t have control over what is going on in Viet Nam.”
“Sometimes the best gift you can give is hope. I know it sounds cheesy, but just learning there are possibilities, or receiving assurances can make a big difference. Before Grace came into our lives, I didn’t believe that. But since then, I’ve found it to be true.” Terry saw Johnny’s look of disbelief. “Look, your profession is all about doing and taking action. That’s why you’re here today.”
“Terry, I apologize, I should’ve asked how Grace is doing.” Johnny emitted a gentle sigh, “The guys at the station razz me about missing the obvious.”
“Grace is doing better. They observed her for several hours and told us to confer with our specialist at the Children’s Hospital.”
“Does Grace get out much?” an idea was forming in Johnny’s head.
Terry’s expression grew wistful, “No, we try, but it’s really hard when people stare at her. They don’t understand.”
“Well, I’ll talk to the teachers at Broadacres and the guys, but I think Grace should come to this party. I mean, if it’s okay with everyone and you, of course.” Johnny hoped he hadn’t spoken out of turn.
Terry grasped the paramedic’s shoulder, “That’s very thoughtful, let’s just see if it’s possible. Now, back to the subject at hand.”
“Yeah, isn’t Nicolaus asking for a job for his dad?” Johnny found his name, “I don’t know if there would be any way to find out more to see if he could at least get an interview.”
“That’s a good idea,” Terry jotted a notation next to Nicolaus. The school might be able to give you an idea of what his skills are.”
“I can’t get Sam off my mind,” Johnny admitted. “My dad used to be gone for long periods working in the oil fields and it was tough not knowing if he was okay.”
“Well,” Terry spoke slowly, formulating what he wanted to say. “Mr. Patrick is ex-military. He doesn’t talk much about it, but he has a network. I could talk to him, but there’s no guarantee.”
“Trying is better than nothing,” Johnny felt someone else was sharing his burden.
Terry thought of his daughter, “You’re right. Then I need a definite date and knowing how many people might attend. And, I’ve got to know how your station will participate.”
“You got it. I sure hope we can make this work,” Johnny said in parting.
~~~~
That evening, in the middle of rolling spares, strikes and an occasional gutter ball, Bobbie conveyed that she and her fellow teacher, Georgia, had selected the 17th for the event. “So, what’s up, Johnny?”
“Okay, it looks like Station 51 is gonna work together with Broadway Department store. So, as soon as details are ironed out, could you have the pupils make invitations for their parents? So much is still in the works I can’t tell you much more.” He pulled out a memo requiring information only Bobbie could provide. With that done, Johnny gave his girlfriend his full attention. “I haven’t discussed this with my brothers at the station but I sort of invited the manager’s daughter to this shindig. She’s six years old, too, but she’s got cerebral palsy.”
“Oh, Johnny, I’m sure we’d love to have her!” Bobbie gave him a spontaneous hug. “Georgia and I will educate the children. Does she talk? Is she in a wheelchair?”
“I’m not sure. She was on the floor, unconscious when I saw her. I’ll find out.” Johnny saw another couple was waiting to use their lane.
“We’ll teach about cerebral palsy in general then.” Bobbie untied her bowling shoes, and reached for her ballet slippers.
Johnny slipped his feet into his boots, and positioned the balls in their respective bags and squired Bobbie to the exit. As they parted ways, Johnny emphasized, “I’ll keep you in the loop.”
Thanks,” Bobbie gave him a quick peck as she unlocked her front door.
~~~~
When the Santas convened at the station the subsequent day, Mike, who showed up first, filled the others in on what he knew. “Mr. Roskins is very nice. Here’s the gist, “Date-TBD, Venue-TBD, Refreshments-TBD, Invitations-TBD, Gifts-TBD, Santa-that’s covered. Uh, maybe we didn’t do that much. I had to leave early.”
“Got a date,” Johnny divulged. “It’s the 17th. I asked Bobbie if the kids could make invitations as soon as we know where and time.” He ticked on his fingers; Terry was covering venue and refreshments, gifts-TBD. Oh, didn’t we talk about pitching in money?”
“Yeah, but it won’t stretch very far.” Roy reached into his wallet. “Here’s the $15.00 I promised.”
“The other stations heard what we want to do and they’d like to participate.” Hank Stanley briefed everyone. “Does the 17th work for all of you?” Not hearing any objections, he proceeded, “This is moving fast, Johnny. When can you give us more details?”
“I see Mr. Roskins tomorrow at 10:00. Want me to call you afterwards?” Johnny saw five heads bob.
The captain closed the discussion, “All right, let’s get some department work done. The Chief wanted me to give him a call about OSB. If we aren’t on calls, let’s visit a couple of stations to let the fellas put their money where their mouth is.”
“Just a sec, Cap. So, I can tell the manager at Broadway we’re collecting money, and we’ll all be at the venue for starters?” Johnny verified, as he noticed the word ‘Grace’. “Hey, one last thing. Roy and I treated a little girl with cerebral palsy named Grace.”
“She’s Mr. Roskins daughter,” Roy picked up the trail. “And you wondered if she could come, too, Johnny?”
“You’d have to talk to the parents,” The station leader stated. He saw Johnny’s face, “You already mentioned this to him?”
“Yeah, it kinda slipped out. Is she invited, too?” He blathered on, “And before you ask, I already checked with Bobbie and she’s on board with Grace attending. In fact, she was going to tell the kids about her disease.”
“Well, John, I think it’d be just fine to have her come, too.” Hank clapped his hands. “All right, this station isn’t going to clean itself. Let’s get a move on.”
“Johnny, could you keep it under your hat that I’m going to be Santa?” Mike and the paramedic lowered dried hoses and began to roll them.
“Yeah, I can be mum if you tell me how long you’ve been Santa, and where.”
“My dad started it some years back. I go to the Salvation Army and an orphanage.” Mike cut off the conversation.
Johnny sized up the humble man, who seldom shared with the others, “Ya know the others are going to figure out who’s playing Santa?”
“I’m aware.” With the hoses in place, Mike examined the gauges on the engine.
~~~~
At 10:00 a.m. the following day, Johnny breezed into the manager’s office. Sitting on a small table was a carafe of coffee and a box of donuts. “Help yourself,” Terry offered.
Setting down his folder, Johnny filched two pastries and a cup of black java. Brushing powered sugar off his fingers, the firefighter opened his binder. “Terry, the guys at the station and the teachers are all on board for Grace to attend. In fact, the teachers will fill the kids in on what cerebral palsy is.”
“Thanks, Johnny. Gloria and I would be pleased to have Grace come.”
“The teachers selected December 17 for this celebration. I’ve asked if they could make invitations for their parents once we know the time and place. Oh, and right now I have pledges of $283.00 from the stations. That could go up.”
“Good. Broadway plans to expand into the storefront next door. It’s carpeted but empty at the moment; we can use that. Since school ends at 2:30, we’ll bus the kids directly here and start at 3:00. We figure the whole thing will last about an hour.” Terry put a penciled checkmark by each item he told Johnny.
Station 51’s representative added the information on his document. “That helps quite a bit, leaving refreshments and gifts.”
“Yeah, food. Attendance may be around 150, Broadway will handle that. We’ll put out cookies and milk.”
“That sounds terrific,” Johnny scribbled cookies and milk next to the word refreshments.
Terry pressed on, “I’ve talked it over with headquarters. This is what they plan to do. They want to give each of the kids a small toy. The company donated Barbie dolls, Lego’s, and a pack with a deck of cards and the game Uno. It would help if the teachers could select one of those for each student, and then those will be wrapped. In addition, each child will get a coupon to use at Broadway. We’ll send them to our break room. If they had a specific request, we’ll have that item wrapped for them with their name on it. The others will get a $15.00 gift certificate.” He saw Johnny ready to dispute the proposal and Terry held up his hand, “Let me continue, Ralphs Grocery is willing to contribute $20.00 worth of groceries to the families.”
“But what about what the Fire Department donated?” The paramedic looked defeated. “I mean, all this sounds great, but what happens to the money we put together?”
“What about this?” Mr. Roskins peered at his jottings, “The two teachers will get to choose, with the help of the students, what organization will receive your funds. That way the kids participate in giving to others.”
“I’ll have to check with the guys, but I like it.”
“We don’t have a lot of time. There are a few things we still need to nail down before you go.”
“Oh? I’ll have the teachers make the invites and match the children with the small gifts. Was that it?”
“Not quite. Broadway will provide the supplies, but we’d like the fire department to wrap the Lego’s, dolls and games.”
“Sure, we can make that happen.” Johnny envisioned the crew ribbing each other.
Terry concluded their time together, “We better set up another meeting. I’d like to find out our progress on the challenging pleas.”
“Oh, I do need to talk to Dixie about Susie’s mom.” John tore the corner off a sheet and scrawled Susie and underlined her name. They set up the time for their next get together.
~~~~
Three days before the event, Johnny loaded the toys into his car, along with the wrapping supplies and drove to the station. He had forewarned the guys, and although there had been grousing, it was good-natured. Roy pulled in at the same time and began to help transport this phase of their Operation Santa Broadacres. Soon everything was in the dayroom. The final package was larger than the others. With a flourish, the paramedic revealed the contents. It was a large, soft lamb with white, curly hair. He offered it to Chet, “Take a sniff.”
“What is that?” The man automatically caressed the animal.
John, satisfied with his purchase, announced. “I was reading up on cerebral palsy. The lavender scent is calming and relaxing, the softness is comforting, and the fur,or ‘wool’ encourages them to flex their muscles.”
“In other words, it’s for Grace?” Roy patted the sheep. “You didn’t want her to be left out?”
“No, I didn’t.” Johnny put it on the table, “Santa can give it to her.”
“Okay, men, let’s get these toys wrapped.” Hank Stanley had come in early to tackle the chores so they could concentrate on preparing for the party.
~~~~
The day of the festivity arrived. The men of Station 51 arrived at the Westcoast Mall at 2:00 p.m. The empty storefront now had three decorated trees and folding chairs with colorful bows scattered throughout the room. Near the back of the room, several round tables stood in readiness with Christmas tablecloths that were barely visible through the refreshments and boxed treasures they held. They would be rolled into the center of the room at the appropriate time. Red and green envelopes containing the certificates for each child filled Santa’s sack.
“Should we go over final details?” Johnny looked at the names, “Susie’s set.” He’d Dixie convinced the nursing supervisor to transfer Susie’s mother to the ER. This allowed her to provide some day shifts for her.
Terry grabbed Johnny, “Nicholas’ father has an interview on the 19th. He’s got a real affinity for repairs and we need someone like him here at the store. It’s a start.”
“That’s great. What about Sam?” Johnny had dwelt on the boy’s family, whose father was in Viet Nam. Terry was called away before he could answer Johnny.
Mike Stoker practiced his ho-ho-hos on the adults. Chet was flabbergasted his reserved teammate embraced the role of Santa.
Captain Stanley drew near to Mr. Roskins. “We are very grateful for everything you and the store are doing. And, the firefighters have donated a total of $374.50.”
“Santa can make that announcement at the appropriate time.” Terry saw Brad Patrick motioning to him.
Brad gave the manager a hearty slap on the back, “I had to pull some strings but it’s set for 1515 today.”
“We’ll take the family to my office.” Terry’s face showed gratitude. “They’ll be very pleased.”
There was a commotion at the entrance as Gloria pushed Grace’s wheelchair into the room. Grace was glowing and looked angelic in a white dress with silver metallic threads woven through it. She wore gold tights and had a red Christmas bow attached to her headband. They no sooner found a spot for her and the air filled with the excited voices of young children. They entered as a horde, until Bobbie stepped forward and established order. “Now boys and girls, I want you to meet our hosts. She introduced Mr. Roskins and the firemen. And, we have a special guest with her mother. Everyone say hello to Grace.”
“Let’s start out with milk and cookies,” Hank Stanley saw several store employees ready to hand out the treats.
He observed a gray-haired woman moving carefully among the crowd, taking photos. She smiled at him, “l work for Broadway Department Store and and am at Santa’s booth. Your men treated me when I broke my ankle. My name’s Melanie and Sam, my grandson is in Miss Johnson’s class.”
“Can I steal her away?” Terry materialized, and then piloted Melanie away. “Could you get Sam, and your daughter Stefanie, and come with me?” They exited from the storefront and the captain lost sight of them. After several minutes elapsed, Bobbie clapped her hands to gather the children around. “Has everyone enjoyed the food? Let’s tell them thank you.”
Hank Stanley stepped forward again, “We have a special visitor from the North Pole. Any idea who that might be?” Santa came forward to cheers from the crowd.
Meanwhile, Mr. Roskins settled Sam’s family in his office, and stepped out to tell the operator to transfer the call. The phone rang as the manager told Sam to answer it. He became emotional as he heard Sam say, “Dad? Daddy is that really you?” He heard sniffs from Melanie and her daughter.
Sam chatted a few minutes and handed the receiver to his mother, “Daddy wants to talk to you.” Sam brushed a tear off his cheek and blinked at Terry, “My dad’s a Ma-rine. He’s proud of me and told me Ooo-rah. I’m happy he’s okay.” When the short conversation ceased, Melanie and Stefanie flung their arms around Sam. “We spoke to your dad!”
“Would you like to go back to your classmates now?” Terry took the boy’s hand. “And, can you talk to my daughter, Grace?”
“Yeah. She’s pretty,” Sam said matter-of-factly.
Terry, pleased, squeezed the lad’s hand, “I think so, too!”
Santa spied Sam, “This is for you.” Sam tore the paper to discover the games inside.
Santa looked at the lone gift in his pack, “Sam, would you be my helper and take this to Grace?” He stooped down to whisper, “she might need help opening it, but you can handle that.”
“I got it,” Sam marched to the girl in the wheelchair, “Santa told me to give this to you. Wanna find out what it is?” The boy ripped the present open, and settled the lamb in the crook of Grace’s arm. “Hey, it smells good, too.”
Miss Johnson gathered the children around. “There are a few more things we get to do before our time here is over. Listen to Mr. Roskins.”
“The firemen are the ones who got this party together. Not only that, but they collected money. They want you and your teachers to choose who will get this money so you can make other boys and girls happy.”
“Miss Johnson?” Sam drew closer. “My dad’s a Ma-rine. I think they get toys to give kids. It’s called Tot Toys.”
“Toys for Tots,” his grandmother corrected.
Miss Johnson looked at her charges, “Okay, everyone in favor of giving this donation to Toys for Tots, raise your hand.” It was a unanimous decision.
The manager continued his pronouncement, “Broadway Department Store will give your teachers our Christmas catalog. And, you can decide together what toys to donate to Toys for Tots. Santa needs to tell you one more thing.”
Santa informed everyone about the money for groceries and directed them to the store’s break room. The room emptied and Johnny heard a movement behind him. Rotating, he saw Terry and Gloria surrounding Grace. Gloria broke away and gave Johnny a hug. “Thank you so much. It was wonderful for Grace to be accepted by everyone. And, Sam wants to come over to the house and play with her.”
“I’m glad it worked out,” Johnny saw the others waiting for him to help clean up the mess.
~~~~
“Hey, Johnny, that party sure was fun! Let’s do it next year!” Chet’s enthusiasm accompanied the bounce in his step as he came into Station 51 for his twenty-four hour tour.
“I’m in,” Marco buttoned his work shirt and straightened his badge.
Roy secured his locker door, “Why don’t we make this an annual event?”
“I thought you’d feel that way,” Johnny admitted, facing the others. “That’s why I already told Bobbie to count on us for next year.”
Dear Reader: In this season of giving, would you consider giving your time and resources to others? There are a multitude of opportunities everywhere. Thank you to those that already do. ‘Santa’
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Christmas Stories Page December 2008 Picture Stories by Marty P.
