A sea of Santas roamed the streets of Mainstrasse Village Saturday for SantaCon – the annual gathering of revelers celebrating the Christmas spirit dressed up as St. Nick and taking to the streets for a day of drinking and merriment.
One Santa stood out against the rest, his appearance seemingly modeled after the poem “Twas the night before Christmas”:
“His eyes, how they twinkled,
His dimples how merry,
His cheeks were like roses, when kissed by the sun,
His nose like a cherry, all wrinkled with fun,
His droll little mouth was drawn up like a bow,
And the beard of his chin was a white as the snow.”
On hand to pass out candy canes and listen to the kids of the neighborhood relay their Christmas wishes, Santa’s presence at Paddy’s on Main stood for something bigger than a photo-op.
It was the culmination of a tremendous donation from one selfless person and the efforts of many volunteers.
“It had to start someplace”
A transplant from New England, Paddy’s proprietor Christopher Estano wanted to thank the Covington community that made him feel welcome. Paddy’s on Main recently celebrated their first year in business, and Estano said that the support those in Covington showed over the past year made it all possible. Wanting to thank the town for their warm welcome, Estano decided give something back.
Dedicating $10,000 of his own money to provide meals, gift cards, and gifts to 25 families in Covington, Estano set the groundwork for what he hopes becomes a yearly tradition.
“It had to start someplace,” Estano said of his initial plans. “So I figure I throw in a significant amount and show a commitment to it. I hope we can make some contact with schools with different programs. I’d like to get some of the other folks in the area on board, maybe put boxes in their bars or restaurants or stores, and I’ll still throw in $10,000 next year and every year after.”
Not always so lucky
Difficult times can land on anyone, and nobody understands that better than Estano.
“My biggest motivation for doing this was that I grew up in the system,” he said. “I lived in three foster homes.”
Knowing the pain of waking up to just another day while other kids opened presents and ate at family gatherings, he decided to do something to change that.
Determining which families would receive these gifts and meals was a difficult task. Beginning with a statement on social media, he was flooded with requests, but it was hard to determine their authenticity.
“I was kind of wrestling with how to do this and try to allow people to keep their privacy,” he said. “People would just post directly on social media things like ‘Hey, can I just write it on here on Facebook?’ I’m like, ‘No! Send their info in a private message,’ because you know, I want people to keep their dignity.”
So he turned to local nonprofits Ion Center for Violence Prevention and Learning Grove. This gave him reliable points of contact ingrained in the community to connect him with families in need.
“If we have the right resources, a lot of these people know far better than we do who needs to help you know,” he said.
All in all, 25 Covington families can breathe a little easier because of the efforts of one Secret Santa and his team of elves. Grocery store gift cards, presents, and meals will be delivered in the days leading up to Christmas morning. Next year, the intent is to make the event even bigger, continuing the tradition of helping more families and children than the year before.
On Saturday, Santa sat in his large, leather chair on the patio of Paddy’s on Main and listened as a boy read off his Christmas wish list (complete with hand-drawn examples).
Estano watched all the families and guests, pleased.
Children came and went from the porch, each one waving goodbye emphatically as they closed the gate behind them. In a brief childless moment, Santa pulled the reporter aside. Certain that Santa was telling them they were getting only coal this year in their stocking, Santa leaned into the reporter, gesturing to Estano off to the side of the porch.
“You believe in Santa right,” Santa asked. “You should. Santa doesn’t come from a chimney, he comes from the heart.”
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