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January 2010
Mark is literally screaming for joy as Santa and his elves approach Mark’s cottage. I know this to be true as I have a very close personal relationship with Santa. As luck would have it Santa’s chair, very nicely padded and decorated, is placed directly next to Mark’s chair. Mark continues to scream. Santa, already struggling to see due to his glasses being fogged up by the rapid change from cold to warm, now begins to go deaf in one ear. Turning to a blurry elf for assistance Santa is gently handed a present for, you can’t make this stuff up, Mark. Mark screams louder. Luckily the next gift is for one of the other now fully revved up boys in the cottage. Mark meanwhile has taken three seconds to shred the wrapping paper to discover the red remote-controlled car he has been hoping to receive. Welcome to Christmas at Bonnie Brae! With ninety-seven boys and young men on campus, planning for the holidays begins several months before the big guy in the red suit arrives. Staff members sit down with each boy to determine his wish list of possible presents. Through many years of experience we have learned to be very specific. What color hat? What type of game? What size? Once the individual wishes are compiled into one master list the elves/adults are treated each year to a crash course in pop culture. What is an Ipod Nano? Does any rap artist make any non-x-rated CD’s? If our smallest resident wants a triple-x sweat shirt what size must I be? We have come to rely on a growing number of individuals, Board members, families, churches, and community groups to “adopt” individual residents or in some cases, entire cottages. Without the dedicated efforts of these “Santa’s helpers” we would never be able to meet all of the boys’ wish lists. Inevitably there are glitches: presents that can’t be found; sizes that are too large or too small; and some late arrivals on our doorstep. To complete the shopping our staff take to the local stores and malls searching for these last minute gifts. In a sad sign of the times we require that all donated gifts arrive unwrapped so that they can be checked for safety purposes. As a result, one room, in a secret on-campus location, becomes the center for the hundreds of gifts that need to be carefully wrapped. On the day that Santa is scheduled to arrive on campus, always a few days before Christmas so as to allow for home visits, excitement builds throughout the day. Many of the boys and young men, knowing that I have a close and personal relationship with the big guy in the red suit, approach me with last minute requests and any news of Santa’s arrival. The festivities always begin with a holiday dinner in our dining room. Unlike all of our other meals this holiday dinner is special both because everyone squeezes in for one sitting and Kim, our kitchen supervisor, and her talented staff prepare a true feast with a few unusual surprises. This year the boys particularly enjoyed the chocolate fountain with assorted fruit and marshmallows, as well as the always popular “make your own sundae” dessert! Following the holiday dinner everyone walks over to the gym for an amazing and mystifying magic show. But wait, what’s this? To combat some perceived lack of belief on the part of our older residents our basketball court has been magically transformed during the holiday dinner into Santa’s Landing Zone (SLZ). There is a freshly painted large colorful sign to guide Santa to a soft landing, straw for the hungry reindeer, and several volunteer staff wearing orange safety vests and using orange flashlights to guide Santa to the landing zone. Of course staff are intently gazing into the winter sky and slowly waving the flashlights in a welcoming arc. It works! Many of the residents on their way to the magic show stop to gaze upward as well! While the magic show is drawing the usual “oohs and ahh’s” Santa’s elves are hard at work distributing the beautifully wrapped gifts to be placed under the Christmas trees in each cottage. To build excitement, which is hardly necessary at this point, Santa makes a surprise appearance to the side of the magic show, is promptly spotted by a young resident, and quickly disappears. After the show, staff and residents rush to their cottages to make final preparations. Soon enough Santa and his elves begin to visit each cottage. Based on Bonnie Brae tradition Santa only enters a cottage when he can hear loud singing of Christmas carols. So with Santa and his elves entering, Mark screaming, gifts stacked high under the tree, wrapping paper flying, another successful holiday season comes to a joyous conclusion. Thanks to all of you who helped to make the holiday season brighter here at Bonnie Brae!
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