Photo of Mrs. Claus and Santa courtesy of Dan and Nancy Behring.
By Pat Stinson
ONEKAMA – At 11 a.m. this Saturday, Santa and Mrs. Claus will arrive by fire truck to the Farr Center, 5283 Main St. (M-22), to hear what children want from Santa for Christmas.
The jolly couple from the North Pole will listen to children’s requests until 1 p.m.
To add to the merriment, there will be music, punch and cookies, and each child will receive a small toy.
Annual visits from Santa and Mrs. Claus are one of the ways the Junior (Jr.) Clio Club, of Onekama, gives back to the community. This year, as they have for more than a decade, club members Dan and Nancy Behring will step into the roles of Santa and Mrs. Claus.
“It’s nice to be with families and kids and bring a message of hope,” Dan said, explaining that the couple who had the roles previously retired to Florida.
“Dan thought it would be fun (to be Santa and Mrs. Claus), and it is,” Nancy said, adding that she has worn a wig to cover her “blondish” hair, which is less so these days.
She describes her Mrs. Claus costume as “eclectic,” pulled from partial costumes the school owns, but Santa’s suit is complete, including the padded stomach.
Asked to describe their arrival and Christmas activities in the village, Dan said they ride to their destination on a fire truck. “The whole town knows. They anticipate us coming into Farr Center and start lining up.”
The pair sit in front of a Christmas tree inside the Farr Center, and children may sit on Santa’s knee. Dan said sometimes two kids sit at once. Some children are too bashful to approach him.
“Little ones are not as much afraid of Mrs. Claus,” Nancy said, “and they sometimes talk to Santa from my knee.”
Dan said after they calm down, he asks the kids what they hope for, for Christmas. Then he listens to their stories.
“Kids ask for interesting things,” he said. “Families want photos.”
One girl asked him for time. When he asked her why, she said her dad had died and she didn’t spend enough time with him. Dan said he thought, “Whoa!” He suggested that she could spend time with friends of her dad’s that she knew.
Nancy quickly interjected that Dan had been a psychologist.
“You never know what answers you’ll get,” Dan said, sharing another child’s request.
“I want a real powerful four-wheel drive vehicle, and not just a toy one.” Dan looked to the the parents, who were shaking their heads, and he thought a moment before he replied, “Do you know how to drive? Can you spend some time with your dad and maybe learn a little from him, watching him drive?”
Nancy said, chuckling, “Psychologist.”
One little girl told him, “I need a new dog. The one I have now pees all over the place.”
Dan replied, “Maybe you ought to talk more about your dog to your parents and how you can help it learn not to do that.”
As Santa, he likes to ask each child what grade they’re in, if they like to read, do they help their parents, do they have brothers and sisters and are they nice to them. Favorite expressions he likes to share with them are: “The more you read, the more you know. The more you know, the farther you go” and “Work hard; never give up.”
“Santa is a way for us (to ask) what’s good behavior,” Dan said. “That doesn’t happen very often.” He said it’s “a significant tool in culture … What’s naughty? What’s nice?”
Last year, several older women wanted to sit on his knee. “It’s nostalgic for them,” Nancy said.
Asked for their final thoughts about playing Santa and Mrs. Claus, Dan answered first.
“It dips into the history of my own life and a sense that life can go on and contribute in many ways,” he said. “It’s the joy of the joy.”
Nancy replied, “Oh, I agree. From the parents to the babes, just the look of joy, the joy on their faces and the wonderment.”
Asked how many years they might continue in their roles, Dan, 85, and Nancy, 84, suggested they would continue for as long as they could. Nancy said they used to stand on top of the fire truck as it rolled along Main Street. “It’s way up there, you know,” she said. “Now we don’t go as high.”
Junior Clio Club
The Jr. Clio Club formed more than 60 years ago, mainly as a social club with an affinity for history, according to Nancy Behring, the club’s current Mrs. Claus. It is reportedly an offshoot of the now-defunct Clio Club.
“Clio is the muse of history,” she said, adding that members like to “remember historical things.”
The club’s members also like to do good works in their community. The service organization raises funds and members volunteer for activities such as Christmas in Onekama.
“At Thanksgiving, we donate 4 to10 ‘thinking of you’ baskets to people who have been ill or had a loss,” she said. The baskets are also given to community newcomers.
She said the club has provided two $500 scholarship awards to senior high school students. To compete for the award, interested students submit an essay describing how they have helped in their school and community, what their plans are for the future and what their grade-point average is.
Those interested in learning more about the club can visit the Jr. Clio Club Facebook page here.
Pat Stinson is the publisher and co-editor of the Freshwater Reporter. She enjoys the wonder of the holiday season.
