Operation Blue Santa brings holiday joy to families in need

The children who sent letters to Blue Santa didn’t ask him for the latest toy or video game. They asked for the things many take for granted – a new bath towel, socks, shoes, a bed.

One 11-year-old girl asked Blue Santa to pray for her family and to bring back her father, the version of him who isn’t abusing drugs.

The toys they do ask for aren’t fancy; a 9-year-old boy who’d recently been homeless wanted superhero Legos he’d seen at a Walgreens.

Thanks to the Turlock Police Department’s Operation Blue Santa program, those kids, their families and dozens of other families got everything they asked for and more this year.

Officers with the department dress up as Santa Claus to deliver presents to the families, but instead of a red velvet suit, this Santa dons blue to represent law enforcement and even wears the Turlock Police Department patch on his shoulders.

Operation Blue Santa was modeled on a program started by a police department in Texas decades ago, but the idea caught on in Turlock in 2012 when Blue Santa made his debut at a Shop with a Cop event put on by the city.

The following year, Operation Blue Santa became its own program and enough money was raised and toys donated to provide for 10 families.

This year, the budget and donations increased fivefold. From Tuesday to Friday, Blue Santa visited 50 families with a total of more than 150 children.

“Other than just giving kids a good Christmas for this year, it’s also our way to reach out to these kids and let them know that law enforcement is there for them,” said Turlock police Lt. Miguel Pacheco.

The families in need are identified and nominated for the program by patrol officers, school officials and church groups in the community.

The Police Department raises money by selling Blue Santa shirts and sweatshirts and through donations.

The majority of the items purchased this year, however, came from people who sponsored individual families. Sponsors are assigned a family and receive the letters the children wrote to Blue Santa so they can do the shopping.

Pacheco said the program fulfills all the things the children need – like a bed for a 3-year-old who’d been sleeping on the floor – but also goes beyond the lists to get them toys and bicycles and other items to bring a little more joy to their Christmas.

He said each year the coordinators learn from the experience and adapt the program for the following year. This year, they added “just in case gifts” for children who are visiting the families but were not on the original list. Pacheco said they had two boxes of “just in case gifts” and used them all.

This story was originally published December 24, 2016 at 3:14 PM with the headline "Operation Blue Santa brings holiday joy to families in need."