Show ' Happenings 21 Bookmobile 25 The Herald Journal Logan Utah Sunday December 11 1988 ’ i i t i Rulon Gerber (left) Steve Webb Bryan Chapman end Dan Balls are just four soldiers in the giant red army of Santas working the Christmas circuit this year - ‘ 'A ' — ' - 7 eV --'- T ' w 5 ’ J ? “ i i V- - day they work regular jobs — bank managers university administrators schoolteachers By night however they are transformed into soldiers in a great red army armed with bells and bags and beards to stand as a symbol of childhood innocence — and to give out a few candy canes aioogtheway According to five local Santa stand-in- s dressing up as Kris Kringle is sometimes hard work It can even be painful especially when removing Superglued beards from chins But while the preparation and energy required to impersonate Kris Kringle sometimes make it exhausting it's never dull they say “You get tired sometimes but it never gets boring" said Steve Webb a math teacher at Spring Creek Middle School “I wish the Christmas season were longer" said Bryan Chapman a Utah State University instructional technology graduate student The local Santas who took time out of their scheduled appearances for interviews come as the cliche goes in all shapes and sizes Some need to wear a substantial “belly booster" trade for the accessory that enables them to shake like a bowl full My when they laugh And some shake all on their own all fit the traditional mold when they're out of costume The five Santas who took time from their Christmas appearances for interviews ranged in ages front 27 to 67 One has been dressing up for 27 years another is new to the St Nick game And aU began impersonating Santa for different reasons ' Webb — now 35 — was coerced into it when he was 21 and a e Christmas program appearance young teacher The turned into 14 years of wearing the red suit Rulon Gerber 67 i former grocery store owner 27 Santa Claus years ago because he wanted began impersonating to dress up for his own family “I enjoyed it so much that 1 started doing it for extended family and friends and eventually 1 decided to go professional I bought a better suit and sharpened up my act" he said Ron Jones 44 the assistant to the vice president for student services at Utah State University originally had the suit made five years ago so he could make free Santa visits to indigent families To pay back the cost of the suit he sits as St Nick at the Cache so they are considering making an elf suit for him ' “My kids have more fun watching because they know it s their dad in that suit" he said “The other day some kids came running over to see me when 1 had the suit on and my kids just sat in the ear and beamed because they knew something the other kids ' ' didn't know" of Santa the by worked at maintaining mystique The others have dressing in other places besides their homes and keeping their chklren away when they are dressed as Santa “I’m keeping it a secret and letting them find out on their own’ Jones said “1 suspect that my older kids are starting to figure it out but I don't get dressed at home I've never done that" home — his “superman Chapman dims his red suit at his doesn’t figure it son his so Quincy booth" telephone ' out one and day he saw my Santa “Last year I still dressed at home mom there are 'Look He said on counter the gloves sitting Santa’s hands’" Chapman said “We're planning on having another Santa come visit so he can see Dad and Santa at the same By - s' time" s Webb also keeps it a secret from his younger children while ‘ d T Chapman 27 was 17 when he started impersonating Santa Claus because he thought he could do a better job than those who came to his house when he was a child “My family has always hired Santas to come to our house When I was a teenager I started making jokes about how silly some of the Santas looked and how poorly they were doing it” he said “I started thinking I could do better than they were so I rented suits for a few years and started practicing” Dan Balls 31 is just starting out on the quest in search of perfect Clausdom He had a suit made this year and for the first time will be appearing as Santa Wearing the red suit has been the fulfillment of a fantasy he says “We've had a lot of friends and family members who have dressed up as Santa and it's always been a desire of mine to get involved" the American Savings 4 Loan manager said “It's always been a kind of fantasy — a lifelong desire" Balls is unique among the Santas because he involves his two young children in the preparations for dressing up He explains that hii children still believe in Santa — they have been told that he is just one of Santa's helpers “My kids have been as much a part of it all the way through as I have We've just explained that Santa can't be everywhere at once so 1 fill in where he can't be" Balls said son has been begging to go with him He said his oldrr 4 year-old i 'Santa Claus-Th- e one-tim- Valley telling his older ones that he is just a stand-i- n for St Nick “My oldest ones think it's neat I try to tell the kids that i am just Santa's helper I'm not the real Santa I just help him by getting people into the spirit of Christmas” he said Gerber is now a grandfather — he struggles to keep the fact that he dresses as Santa a secret from his grandchildren as he did from his five children “When my kids were home my wife would make me up and I would sneak in and out of the house Now it's a snap except when the grandkids are here” he said None of the Santas had formal training although Chapman said he used to watch himself on videotape to see what he could do to improve The others said they picked up a few things along the way that have helped them Balls said he asked others who've dressed as “The Big Man” for some pointers He said he learned not to promise things to children no matter what the financial situation is because the parents shouldn't be put in a bind if they hadn't planned to get that gift Gerber said when he began dressing up ne started collecting stories to tell if he runt out of things to say learned right when I started that the two most important things about being Santa are looking good — having a really good suit — and being witty A good Santa should be able to handle any situation that comes along" he said To get into the spirit of Christm as this year Jones watched Movie' “And now when I’m getting ready to go out I just stand in front of the mirror for a second to evaluate myself" Jones said “I'll just stand for a second and get into the feel of it because the minute you walk out the door that's who you are" Several of the Santas who do Christmas parties — fees range from $15 for a small party to $35 for a larger one — say they park a few blocks away so that the kids don't see them driving away in a Buick or a Suburban “I always park away from the house because when you are leaving a house the kids ail run to the window to watch you — sometimes they even want to come outside with you" Webb said You don't want them to see you driving k way in a normal car’ Chapman said he also parks away from the house because he doesn't want to be seen but that leads to interesting situations “I have a really nice set of bells and for some reason they attract dogs like crazy" he said “There I am walking through a quiet snowy night and aU of a sudden all the dogs start barking and chasing me My worst fear is that I'm going to get attacked by some dogs” All of Ine Mr Santas worry about being — having kids try to yank beards off or trying to guess who they are “The part I least enjoy about being Santa is worrying about whether some smart aleck is going to pull your beard and give you a rough go but I have different ways of handling that" Gerber said Those ways he said are “Santa secrets" To prevent being most glue their beards on with Superglue or some other strong adhesive to make sure it's not tugged away The St Nicks also feel uncomfortable when parents force their children to sit on Santa's lap whether they want to or not — even when the children are terrified of the stranger “That's the big disadvantage of working somewhere public like a mall" Jones said “There are a certain percentage of people who See SANTAS on page 20 “de-Clause- Ron Jones has his hands full at the Cache Valley Mall — Text: RaeAnne Thayne Photos: Pete Schropp ‘- LitxitLz |