Mall Santas Reveal Wildest Requests From Kids

It’s a rite of passage each year: bringing the kids to meet Santa at the mall or a local department store. But what do those brave souls who don the bright red suit and subject themselves to requests ranging from hilarious to heartbreaking have to say about the experience? Yahoo Parenting rounded up a few memorable stories Santa and his helpers have shared on Reddit over the years.

“I was a Santa for four seasons. Kid at the front of the line yells to his mom, so everyone in the mall can hear, ‘Mom, can I ask Santa to use his special magic to get dad out of jail?’ But when he got on my lap he asked for a car.” — ex-santa

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“One day I had a long line of kids all upset and crying. A company was having their xmas party in another part of the mall and had their own Santa who was handing out presents to the children of the employees. Problem was that this was in full view of the public, so it was clear that there were TWO SANTAS at the mall. And only one was handing out presents.” — ex-santa

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“The most heart-wrenching story was a little girl, about 7 or so, who was staying with her dad and stepmom because her mommy was deathly ill in the hospital. She came and saw me every day that I was there and she just wanted to talk to someone she KNEW could really understand where she was coming from in her fear. She hoped that she could come visit the North Pole, but understood if it wasn’t possible. My last day of the gig she brought me a handwritten-in-crayon note thanking me for everything, saying she was glad to have met me and hoping that I grew up to be the best Santa ever. Lemme tell ya, all the feels. I am going to keep that damned note forever.” — ProtagonistAgonist

“About a ½ dozen kids asked for fax machines. This was in 1989. I’m pretty sure they had no idea what they were. I had no idea what they were. I thought it was a version of Big Wheel, or something.” — i_know_tofu

This baby’s Christmas list never made it to the North Pole. (Photo: Phyllis Buchanan/Flickr)

“Worked as a photographer for a mall Santa. It’s not that weird, but my favorite moment was when a kid asked for a live octopus or shark. Santa said he wasn’t sure if his elves would be able to make those. Kid said he’d settle for a giant squid if he had to.” — Killer_Sloth

“I was Mrs. Claus one year at the school where I worked as a fifth grade teacher. One of the younger students asked for a military costume, a unicorn, sugar cookies, and pickles. Santa had a hard time understanding his little kid voice, so I kind of interpreted. Santa asked him if he liked pickles a lot, and he got very indignant and said, ‘No, not for me. Unicorn food!’” — sarahjayn

“A little girl asked for a lifetime supply of peanut butter so her dog would lick it off her face forever.” — Scrykton

“I was a Santa at Macy’s in New York City for one season. … The most memorable moment I ever had was with a girl of about 6 or 7. She was sitting on my lap, with her mom right in earshot. Her mom was prodding her to ask what she wanted but the girl was very overcome by the awe of seeing Santa. That happened a lot. After a moment she said ‘I want an American Girl doll’ in a way that was a complete ruse, and meant only for her mom to hear. Then she gave me a really quick shake of the head, and leaned in to whisper in my ear ‘I just want my mommy to be happy.’ I almost started crying. I whispered back to her that she made her mom more happy than I ever could, but I would help out this year a little bit. Her mom really wanted to know what was being said, but then I got an adorable look from the girl again, telling me that I was to keep our conversation a secret. She really had Santa on lockdown.” — Etervigila

What Santa looks like when his true identity is in jeopardy. (Photo: Duluoz cats/Flickr)

“6-year-old boy is waiting patiently on line to meet me, when it’s his turn hops right into my lap. I ask him what he would like for Christmas, he mentions a few of the more popular toys that year, and then hands me a letter. I receive a lot of letters in person (even kids get antsy trusting the USPS to deliver such an important piece of mail). I ask him if he’d been a good boy all year, he smirks, points to the letter and tells me not to worry about it, and marched away. My curiosity was piqued, so I opened his letter at the end of the gig. In it was a list, a note that said ‘Dear Santa, thank you for bringing me everything on my list. Love, Anthony’ and a picture of Abe Lincoln. The kid bribed me with a $5 bill. I was horrified and quite impressed all at the same time. To this day, I can only imagine what he had done.” — Junglejimirish

“Shy, adorable 4-year old girl finally sits on my lap after a great deal of coaxing by me, the photographer and her mom. Won’t say a word, complete silence, which isn’t uncommon for the age and shyness level. I ask her if she likes princesses, ballerinas, soccer; anything to get a nod or a quiet yes. Not a peep. After photos, I reassure her that I will be bringing her some great gifts on Christmas Eve (so that she doesn’t feel bad later on). Walks away clutching Mom’s hand, suddenly bolts back towards my chair, gets a foot away from my face and practically yells ‘I don’t like Mac & Cheese!!!’ Thank God she told me, because I had cases at the North Pole ready to go with her name on it.” — Junglejimirish

“Sweetest request: Please give some of my toys to my friend because his family doesn’t have Christmas at their house. Weirdest request (from a 5 or 6 year old): I want a toaster that makes macaroni and cheese inside of a pop tart.” — DorrinV

“Most heartwarming had to have been the kid about 7 or 8 who wanted me to give food to all the starving kids. Coolest had to have been the young man who requested a Bugatti Veyron. I don’t know how the kid knew what that was, but he was pretty adamant about getting it.” — Santa6823

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Top photo: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Europe District/Flickr