When Santa Visited A Nursing Home…

This is Lee Hibib, and this is Our American Stories. And we tell stories about everything here on this show, from the arts to sports, and from business to history, and everything in between, including your stories. Send us your story, small or large, to our email oas@OurAmericanStories.com. That’s oas@OurAmericanStories.com. We’d love to hear them and put them on the air. Our audience loves them, too. Today, we have one of our regular features brought to us by Stephen Rassinia. This time, his nephew Paul is reading his story for us. The story is entitled, ‘God Bless You, Too, Santa.’

There was a boring regularity to life on the floors. The residents of this nursing home didn’t expect nor welcome change. But at Christmastime, everything did change, and one year something happened that two teenagers will never forget. Christmas was just days away. Decorations of band and a steady stream of holiday tunes quietly playing in the background only added to the joyful atmosphere. Staff members hummed while performing their duties, and the residents—well, they were drawn into the excitement. A surprise visitor was about to make this day even better. The residents love children. Their visits, especially around the holidays, proved magical. Suddenly, even the grouchiest senior became agreeable. Kids brought out the very best in everyone on the floors. On this afternoon, a children’s choir was scheduled to perform, and they had promised to bring with them a special guest. “Who could it be?” they wondered. By early afternoon, everybody knew the answer. Santa Claus was coming to town. And so they waited, and they became children again. A giddy sense of excitement filled these old kids as they began asking the important questions: “What will they sing? Is Santa really coming? And, most important of all, do you think he’ll bring cookies?” Later that afternoon, and as promised, a children’s choir burst forth into the dayroom, singing a spirited rendition of “Jingle Bells.” For the next hour, audience members were treated to so many of their favorite carols, and when the final words, “We Wish You a Merry Christmas,” were being sung, a thunderous “ho ho hold” reverberated throughout the room. A well-padded and very youthful-looking Santa Claus arrived, and he had a large tray of assorted holiday cookies. The choir joined Santa as he mingled with his audience, stopping often to give and receive hugs. When it was time to feed his reindeer, a nurse asked if he’d visit with the bedridden patients. “Of course,” he said, and he did just that. Margaret was confined to her hospital bed, and yet on this day she was just another excited little girl awaiting Santa. She heard the choir outside her room, but was thrilled when a booming “Ho ho ho” echoed from her doorway. With failing eyes, she saw his silhouette. “Santa,” she whispered. Approaching her bedside, and in his pretend Santa voice, he called out, “Merry Christmas, Margaret,” adding, “And what do you want for Christmas, little girl?” Several members of Santa’s holiday entourage smiled because they knew Margaret’s nurse had already asked this same question, and they already knew her answer. With a twinkle in her eyes, she quietly said, “I want a kiss from you, Santa.” Laughter filled the room, and all eyes were quickly upon him, curious to see his reaction. The laughing stopped when Santa gently took Margaret in his own, bent down, and kissed her. “Merry Christmas,” he said, softer now, but still in his pretend voice. “Merry Christmas, Santa,” she replied. A smile appeared upon her wrinkled face as tears welled up in her tired old eyes. Santa lingered for another moment, and then, while still holding her hand, he quietly said, now in his own voice, “God bless you, Margaret.” “God bless you, too, Santa,” she whispered back. The sounds of muffled sobs suddenly filled the room. Fortunately, the nurse reminded Santa that he had other patients to visit, and so he moved on. Little did he know it was time for someone else to be moving on. Also, Santa’s group visited every bedridden patient, and afterwards, he decided on one last stop. He asked his nurse escort if he could say goodbye to Margaret. Struggling to find the right words, she told him that Margaret had died soon after he had left her room. She said that in her final moments, Margaret spoke of being blessed by Santa, and of course, that he had kissed her. The nurse reassured him that when the end came, Margaret was content and that he was the reason why. Santa thanked the nurse for telling him and then quickly left the floor. Nobody would want to see Santa Claus cry. I worked at this nursing home where the elderly lived, and in the end, they died. I’ll never forget Santa’s visit. He rarely set foot on the floors. Instead, he remained downstairs, working as a part-time dishwasher. He made a pretty good Santa Claus, though we were both still kids on that afternoon, all those years ago. Since then, my brother Paul and I have come a long way.

And thanks to Stephen Risiniac for that beautiful story. And we can picture in our heads that scene, that final scene, and also imagine hearing that news that you’d put a smile on someone’s face just before they died. And what a beautiful thing to do. Probably the most formidable thing that happened in my life in high school—well, actually, by far—the most formidable thing that happened was dating a girl who worked at a nursing home. And of course, because she was there, I was there, and I just got to know these folks, these these older people who many of them didn’t have family visit, didn’t have family left; everybody had died; and just being with them and spending time with them and then watching them pass after having developed relationships with them, it made me different from the other kids. Stephen Versinniak’s story, Margaret’s story, and for so many caregivers across this country, their stories, too. Here on Our American Story, Lee H. Habib here, and I’m inviting you to help Our American Stories celebrate this country’s two hundred and fiftieth birthday, coming soon. If you want to help inspire countless others to love America like we do, and want to help us bring the inspiring and important stories told here about a good and beautiful country, please consider making a tax-deductible donation to Our American Stories. Go to OurAmericanStories.com and click the donate button. Any amount helps. Go to OurAmericanStories.com and give them.