Operation Santa helping families in need put gifts under the tree

Many parents are struggling to afford much of anything this holiday season, but the United States Postal Service’s Operation Santa is there for families in need.

The program helps get presents under the tree for kids who might not get much else and it’s really easy.

It all starts with a letter your child writes to Mr. Claus himself.

Santa Claus is ready to check his Christmas list and the United States Postal Service (USPS) is going to make sure he checks it twice.

“Operation Santa as we like to call it here,” said Robert Rhoad, USPS customer relations coordinator.

Rhoad said Operation Santa is the postal service’s way to help needy families have gifts under the tree.

Kids can write their Christmas wishes to Santa and mail ’em to this address:

“And then Santas helpers will receive that letter and they will process it and send a package containing the gift that the child requests in the letter,” said Rhoad.

Santa’s helpers can be anyone. You can help a child or even an entire family.

Adopters, as Rhoad calls them, wait for the letters to Santa to arrive, then choose the ones with wishes they wish to fulfill.

Lehigh Acres mom Sherry Saffer told WINK News that Operation Santa means so much to so many moms and dads. “These single families, struggling families. They’re going to be able to see their child smile on Christmas morning because someone cared enough and someone loved them enough to give them that opportunity.”

Rhoad said, “I came from a very underprivileged family and I know I wish I knew that this was around at that time because there are a lot of Christmases where there was a choice between food or presents for the children.”

The best part of Operation Santa, parents can put their worries aside and let Santa’s helpers do the rest.

The postal service has made it easy for your son or daughter to write a letter to Santa.

Just go to uspsoperationsanta.com and scroll down to write a letter. There you will find templates that you can use for your letter, but you must mail them.

If anyone wants to help make those wishes come true, you can officially begin adopting letters on Nov. 29th. On that same website, you can sign-up to become a letter adopter at the top of that page.