‘We can’t take away Santa’

FAIRFIELD – The Fairfield Area Chamber of Commerce has announced that kids can visit Santa five times between now and Christmas.

Santa will be available for 'drive by” visits at his workshop on the northeast corner of the Fairfield square from 6-8:30 p.m. on the following days:

' Friday, Dec. 11.

' Saturday, Dec. 12.

' Friday, Dec. 18.

' Saturday, Dec. 19.

' Wednesday, Dec. 23.

Chamber CEO Darien Sloat said he was happy to be able to offer the event, whose future was uncertain in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

'We want our community to do its part to slow the spread of the pandemic and help take pressure off of our overworked health care staff,” Sloat said. 'With the input and support of Chris Estle at Jefferson County Public Health, we believe we can make this happen in a way that will keep everyone safe.”

Santa and his helpers will greet carloads of families who would like to spend a few moments with Santa and collect a gift bag. The bag includes a candy cane, a letter from Santa and a commemorative 2020 ornament with a cutout to insert your family picture. Kids can drop off their letters to Santa when they visit or place it in his special mailbox near his house.

Santa and his helpers will be wearing masks and will be physically distanced. The Chamber asks families to stay in their cars. Although the event has been approved by Jefferson County Public Health, it is subject to change depending on new mandates from Gov. Kim Reynolds.

JC Huffman Cabinetry in Fairfield manufactured the ornaments that will go in the gift bags. The business contributed much to the Christmas display downtown. Last year, it built a new house for Santa and remodeled his old house into a separate building to serve as his workshop. After families visited Santa, they went to his workshop to put their picture with him into an ornament.

Teresa Huffman said the business wanted to carry on the tradition of giving out ornaments. She was the one who hatched the idea of having a 'drive-by” Santa, so kids could still see Jolly Old St. Nick, but from a safe distance.

'The pandemic has taken so much away from the kids,” she said. 'It's canceled every kind of social thing from sports to play dates. I felt like we just can't take away Santa.”

Huffman makes the arrangements for Santa and his volunteers, of which there will be about four to six each night, fewer than in a normal year.

JC Huffman has already made about 250 ornaments and is making more 'as we speak,” Huffman said Monday. Last year, the business made 850 and had about 20 left over. It made multiple ornaments that year, but Huffman said they have decided to do just one per year from now on, because some people were going through the line multiple times until they got every kind of ornament.

'It puts more work on those of us who make them,” she said.

This year's ornament is in the shape of a stocking, adorned with jingle bells, snowflakes and a gingerbread man. A hole is cut into the center where people can insert a picture.

'We have a little package of stickers people can put on at home,” Huffman said. 'It will be more of a family project than previous years of coming to Santa's workshop.”

For questions about this event, contact Sloat at the Chamber office by calling 641-472-2111 or email him at ceo@fairfieldiowa.com.