I remember a statement made by former mayor Rudy Giuliani years ago about his frustration with the media and their tendency to focus their news coverage on the negative. He cited specific instances at that time of kind, benevolent, humanitarian acts that were worthy of coverage but which the media had not covered at all. I think there is much truth in this – the positive does not sell. It takes an extraordinary act of kindness to compete with a smidgen of dirt. Gossip, divorce, murder, crime, natural disasters, infidelity, sex scandals, money, celebrities – these are the things people want to hear about.

So it is easy to understand how Operation Santa Claus could slip in under the radar or at least be relegated to a back story and forgotten. Each year, hundreds of thousands of letters are addressed to Santa Claus. Most of these are written by needy children asking for a variety of things. Sadly, many of the basic necessities are included, such as diapers, food, and clothing.
Operation Santa Claus began informally in the 1920s when postal clerks began responding to letters from children addressed to Santa Claus which otherwise would have ended up in the dead letter box. The clerks contributed their own money to buy gifts for the needy. As the number of letters grew, the postal clerks asked the public for help, and Operation Santa Claus was born.

Until two years ago, Operation Santa Claus was headquartered at the U.S. General Post Office in New York City. This is the big kahuna of post offices, in the James A. Farley Building, a massive structure occupying two full city blocks and the only postal station in New York City open 24/7. All the Santa letters ended up here, but recently, postal stations nationwide are beginning to participate (see here for a list of stations). Also, for security reasons, some of the policies have changed.

Previously, calls could be made for letters to be mailed or faxed, but now access must be made in person. Up to 6 letters can be had per person or 100 for organizations. The operation is set up at the north end of the main interior lobby (see here for hours and information). The program ends December 24th. It’s still not too late for an unreported act of kindness 🙂

UPDATE: A comment here referenced use of my photo for a Gothamist article on operation Santa Claus. Unfortunately, the article references one by the New York Times, which reported that Operation Santa Claus was suspended nationwide on December 18 without much information as to why or for how long. The Times article indicates that there was reason to believe the halt was because “a registered sex offender had “adopted” a letter.”

New York City has its own solution and/or variation on most business services and holiday celebrations. In many cases, an innovative and resourceful approach is required to provide desired products and services in a city with limited space and astronomical rents. The sale of Christmas trees is this type of business, so here, we take it to the streets.

Like umbrella sales people who sprout in the rain, Christmas tree vendors germinate at holiday time, offering an impressive array of trees. With such an affluent community as customers, sellers can offer a range of trees and variety of species: the classic Balsam Fir as well as the Noble Fir, Norway Spruce, Fraser Fir, Douglas Fir, Norfolk Island pine, Scots Fir, and potted trees.

When vendors are needed with product expertise typically alien to city folk, outsiders, seeing opportunity, fill that need. In the case of Christmas trees, we have sellers from Quebec who camp out on the streets, setting up makeshift living quarters and selling trees around the clock. A number of reasons are cited to explain the domination of Quebecois – I think familiarity with the product in tandem with the hearty nature of French Canadians and their ability to tolerate days on end in cold weather are reasons enough. Read the fascinating story from the New York Times about Daniel Lemay, The Stranded Elf of Second Avenue.

Many New Yorkers do leave the city to visit tree farms in the tri-state area (Connecticut, New Jersey, New York State), making it a day-trip adventure and saving some money.
However, most New Yorkers love convenience, and are willing to pay for it.

There has been a growing trend to order trees online which are delivered to your door by UPS, but most still enjoy the immediacy and holiday shopping process. The experience of choosing a tree from a large selection on a street in your neighborhood, having it bagged, and dragging it home is perhaps unique to the urbanite in its details. But it’s a real tree, we get to choose it, we bring it home, we decorate it, and its fun. Just like everyone else 🙂