Dec. 22, 2011
Santa's Post Office has confirmed Santa and his postal elves have just delivered their 20 millionth response letter, to a child in London (Ontario). Santa remained secretive about who received the letter as all his letters are private and special – saying only that his answer to the question in the letter was "polka dots."
Since 1982, Santa's Post Office, supported by Canada Post, has received and responded to more than 20 million letters from children around the world. This season alone, more than a million letters have been received at Santa's Post Office.
"Having children from all over the world send special letters to him at this time of year gives Santa much joy," says Canada Post's Chief Postal Elf Cindy. "Santa reads every letter and it makes him very proud to know that so many children understand the magic of Christmas." Letters started arriving in July, coming from as far as Africa, Eastern Europe and Asia. In fact, letters from Asia have increased by over 20% compared to the previous year.
Though the wish list remains the focus of most letters, children also use their letters to ask Santa questions about his life at the North Pole. Now that he has responded to his mail, he thought it would be fun to answer the top ten inquiries for all:
- What's your favourite cookie?
- "My favourite cookie is Sugar cookies, but I love them all."
- What is your favourite colour?
- "I have two – Red and Green."
- Is Mrs. Claus a good cook?
- "Have you seen my waistline?"
- How do you go to all those houses in one night?
- "It's the magic of Christmas!"
- How do reindeers fly?
- "It's the special food I feed them. Carrots and other treats from boys and girls help keep them going on Christmas Eve."
- How many elves work for you?
- "9,876"
- Do you know Frosty the Snowman?
- "He's my next-door neighbour. I love his hat."
- Are you and Mrs. Claus the mom and dad to all the elves?
- "We love all of our elves like they are our kids."
- Can you prove reindeers really fly?
- "Absolutely! Just watch the skies on Christmas eve and see how the stars shine especially brighter."
- Where do you go for your vacation?
- "The North Pole is fun and magical year-round. Why would I leave?"
The Canada Post Santa Letter-writing Program is an employee-led volunteer initiative – with employees (current and retired) donating over 200,000 hours of time every year – supporting literacy by encouraging children to write letters, promoting correct addressing and the joy of reading.
