Special moments delivered by a Special Santa in the Mat-Su

PALMER — For two decades, special elves around the Valley have been helping children have a special Christmas. Blanketed under Alaska Family Services, the Mat-Su Special Santa Program is a nonprofit organization that provides free toys to children in need. For one reason or another, there’s a fairly large chunk of the Valley with families who are unable to provide items of their children’s wish list. That’s where Special Santa comes in. After collecting materials, raising funds at various events, and combining resources with other entities around town, the volunteers or “elves” busily sort through the toys, clothes and other goodies in their workshop and set up each child on their list with at least two items off their wish list, stocking stuffers, books and winter wear (when available or when asked for). After checking it twice, the elves mark each child off their list and parents can pick up the bag of holiday joy in time for Christmas Day.

“We have a community that wants to do a lot of giving. I see a lot of sharing and a lot of caring,” said Mary Jo Parks, CEO, or “Chief Elf Organizer” of the Mat-Su Special Santa Program.

Low income families with children from a newborn to a high school senior can seek out the program or get referred by a number of sources, including Toys for Tots, the Salvation Army, state and local agencies, food banks, schools, churches and other organizations that work with families in need. All family names are kept confidential and every child receives gifts. According to Parks, the demand for toys rose over the years. She attributes this to a number of factors, namely the “sluggish economy.” She’s noticed a lot of grandparents raising their grandchildren which she thinks could one of the side effects of the opioid epidemic. She also said that there are families from various walks of life who benefit from their services, including the “working poor.”

Special Santa holds an array of fundraisers throughout the year like the “Bike Drive,” in late September through the first week of October; and the “Halloween Hollow,” on Halloween, they hold an indoor trick-or-treat festival at the Raven Hall. The next event is the Festival of Trees, where volunteers decorate 12 small trees (for the 12 days of Christmas) with special themes and various businesses around town house the trees. People can buy as many $1 drawing tickets as they want to try and win the tree. The trees are displayed during the first day of Colony Christmas and winners will be selected Saturday, Dec. 10.

According to Parks, Special Santa is the largest gift-giving service in the Valley. Last year they provided toys, winter wear, books, sporting equipment and blankets to over 3,760 Valley children from 1,279 families. All of the workers involved with the program are volunteers. Parks coordinates the volunteers and connects to various businesses and programs like Toys for Tots, the Salvation Army, and Just Imagine Toys. The Workshop opens on Nov. 28 and runs through December. The Mat-Su Special Santa Workshop is located in the new Salvation Army building in Palmer, at 12271 East Palmer-Wasilla Highway.

Parks has been reflecting on the past 20 years. She said that she continues to be surprised by the larger impacts the program has on the community that go well beyond the material gifts. She’s seen positive changes in the community she’s committed to serving with the help of many along the way. According to Parks, last year, a teenager brought her father along to help her put Christmas packages together in the workshop. The father apparently went through some tough times and was “cynical of what a terrible community we lived in.”

“As he helped his daughter put together those gifts from all the donations and seeing all the volunteers helping, his heart healed a bit and helped renew his faith in the people he called his neighbors,” Parks said.

These “golden moments” are what stirs Parks with more enthusiasm each year.

Ways to get involved or donate:

Volunteer in the Workshop during December.Host a toy drive or a specific item drive like Legos, art supplies, or gift cards.Sponsor a child or children in a family, buying gifts from their wish list. They will provide you with their wish list(s) so you know what they want or need.Donate money and they will do the shopping for you.Spread the word about Special Santa through your newsletters, Facebook, etc.They are also open to any ideas

“The magic of this program is that every donation makes a huge difference and 100 percent of it goes to help the families. A gift to a child in need is an even greater gift to the community,” Parks said.

For more information, call Parks at 907-354-5405 or e-mail matsu_santa@yahoo.com. You can also visit their website at www.specialsanta.net or look them up on Facebook.