November 24, 2023 at 9:35 a.m.
By Larry Perkinson
“You know Michael Jackson and Porter and Hoagy and Pyle
Scat Carothers and Mellencamp and Riley and Dean
But do you recall
One of the most forgotten Hoosiers of all?”
So, if those altered lyrics captured your interest, listen to the game-show music in your head, and put yourself in a Final Jeopardy mode. Can you guess the forgotten soul? Johnny Appleseed for $500. Jim Davis for $1,000. Jane Pauley for the same. No, no, no. It must be Florence Henderson for the works.
Sorry, Virginia, Florence Henderson from Dale was geographically so close, but you’re broke. Dale is six miles away from Santa Claus, Indiana, and an unsung Hoosier legend, Jim Yellig. Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus, and for 54 years Mr. Yellig paid homage to those red threads at his local post office and in his community.
Santa performers around the world know his origin. Yellig was in the navy in 1914. The crew of his ship decided to help some underprivileged children in Brooklyn that Christmas and needed a St. Nick. Jim was selected because Santa Claus was his hometown. He definitely displayed the right stuff and was destined to have more flight-time tales than Gus Grissom.
In 1946 Santa Claus Land opened, and Santa Jim who had been back home again in Indiana since the 1930’s reprised his role at the Candy Castle. Indiana boasted the nation’s first theme park and a “right jolly old elf” who would greet more children than any other Santa ever. He was photogenic, loving, and welcoming when my siblings and I posed with him. Additionally, he was a man on a mission. Spreading joy and happiness was his measure of success.
Joy, happiness, and a dash of hope are great ingredients for our wake-up brew. I can almost see the steamy mist rising from my mug. That is, my imagination can conjure up the image, but the vision disappears with advent of the morning broadcast. At that point, I’m recollecting Anne Murray’s “We sure could use a little good news today.”
“A Little Good News” hit the air waves in 1983 and is still on target in a bah-humbug sort of way. Fighting in Lebanon. Bad economy. “One more sad is story's one more than I can stand.” That cute blonde from Canada melodiously struck a nerve that pains me to this day. Now and then it would be wonderful to hear an anchorperson report, “Anne, I hope you’re listening. We got nice stuff coming right up.”
Most of us have minimal influence on what goes on around the world, but we can have an immeasurable effect on our own little corner of our own little house and the neighborhoods around us. Finding ways to say we care is invaluable. Love is the essence of the magic that makes the world a better place. It’s a part of this festive season. In Miracle on 34th Street, Kris Kringle affirms, “Christmas isn't just a day. It's a frame of mind.” Improving our frame of mind is essential for our future.
From Thanksgiving to Christmas I plan to embrace joy and happiness, to verbalize the Ho-Ho-Ho’s, and to welcome children just as Jim Yellig welcomed me. Stories of St. Nick, Kris Kringle, and Santa are revisited. Favorite toys and games and most-requested gifts are researched, and “A Visit from St. Nicholas” is memorized and pantomimed a hundred times. My red velvet suit and the accompanying faux-fur trim are packed and unpacked weekly along with the black boots and white gloves.
But the enchantment of Christmas can’t just be packed and unpacked. Santas must be ever vigilant for shy glances and hands waving “I think I know you” in the stores they shop in. Everyone needs to be just as understanding of the child who wishes for two front teeth as the child who wishes for a place to live. The warmth that occurs when teens and tots selflessly mention a friend’s need above their own or ask for a mom not to have to work so hard must always feel as fresh as when we first heard similar expressions. Now that’s the magic of the season!
By adding sprinkles of joy and happiness, we could make a batch of magic too. Offering hope and love in our homes and neighborhoods could change lives. Sustaining the effort beyond the Christmas season might create a frame of mind that could eventually lead to a lot more good news in the world today.
For me, there are greater things than Santa Claus. There are gifts that can’t be boxed or bought with credit cards. But “a little old driver so lively and quick” who challenges us to spread good cheer has earned a spot in the Indiana Hall of Fame and a place on my nice list again this year… as have many of you.