Jasmyn Morris (JM): …’Tis the season of reunions on the StoryCorps podcast…but for this holiday special…we’re bringing you something a little different…
Rick Rosenthal (RR): I put my hands on my lips and I said, ”Don’t tell anybody that you saw Santa buying tools for the elves at Home Depot.”
JM: On this week’s episode, how a Jewish man found his calling … as Santa Claus…
RR: There are a couple people, unfortunately, who think I’m crazy. They go, you know, there are so many things you could do, why are you doing that?
JM: It’s the StoryCorps podcast from NPR. I’m Jasmyn Morris. We’ll be right back.
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JM: Welcome back.
At StoryCorps… we like to think of this podcast as your weekly dose of humanity… just a few minutes to remind us that despite our differences… we are all more connected than we might realize…
…And Rick Rosenthal is living proof. He’s a year-round Santa Claus … he’s got the long white beard, the hearty laugh, the spectacles…and he also happens to be Jewish. Modern Orthodox, to be precise.
And at StoryCorps, Rick sat down with his old friend, Adam Roseman, to talk about how he got started as Santa…
RR: I was always that guy that was out in left field, it’s just the way I was. Everybody felt that way. My Dad, God bless him, he loved that part of me.
Adam Roseman (AR): So when did you become an official Santa?
RR: That’s a sad story. My parents died two weeks apart seven years ago, and when Mom passed away, Dad just gave up. He’d lost his partner. And, in Judaism, you don’t shave for 30 days when you lose a parent or a child. When Dad died, I just said “that’s it,” and I just let my beard grow.
That spring, I was at Home Depot, and I hear this voice, ”Daddy,” and there’s a father looking over and his son had turned and saw me, and was sure I was Santa. And I walk up to him and I put my hands on my lips and I said, ”Don’t tell anybody that you saw Santa buying tools for the elves at Home Depot.”
Being Santa does make you a better person because he talks to children, gives them respect, he looks them in the eyes and he listens. And he treats them all the same, whether they are four or 94. It’s not about being an adult or a child. It’s about listening and communicating and providing hope.
AR: I do recall some of the initial conversations when you were planning to become Santa and I do have to say or admit that I was skeptical. But you are that person.
RR: Well, there are a couple people who think I’m crazy. And, you know, we don’t live in a black and white world. The world is filled full of beautiful colors. Unfortunately, there are some people who are black and white.
As Santa, you have to love people, and you just have to do whatever you can to make their lives better so that they can see the colors of the world.
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That’s Rick Rosenthal… aka Santa Rick… speaking with his friend Adam Roseman at StoryCorps in Atlanta, Georgia.
In 2016, Santa Rick founded Northern Lights Santa Academy where Rick says students prepare for “the monumental responsibility of being Christmas professionals.” It is now one of the largest Santa schools in the country.
We appreciate how Rick approaches the holidays. But we were curious how other people would feel…so we went to visit a man who answers to a higher authority …
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Yitz Greenberg (YG): My name is Rabbi Irving Greenberg, commonly known as Yitz.
JM: At 85 years old, Yitz Greenberg is considered to be one of the most renowned and respected Jewish theologians and Modern Orthodox rabbis in America… Here’s his take on Santa Rick’s story…
YG: I grew up in a Jewish immigrant neighborhood in a traditional and observant home so we didn’t go shopping for Christmas and I didn’t go to Santa. At the time I’m sure I complained too much Christmas music and too much this and too much that but as I was listening, I was realizing that Santa’s about listening to people, respecting them and so something that I kind of treated as trivial, in many ways, I underestimated.
There’s a famous Talmudic statement: You should accept the truth from whoever says it because sometimes you want to hear it from someone you trust but, if you keep your mind and your heart open, you can learn truths from everybody, including Santa Claus. (Laughs)
It’s all about making a better world. It’s really an opportunity and a challenge and a model for all of us.
You know, I wish Santa Claus could be a cure for the polarization, the hostility, of the political discourse but I also remind myself, this present moment, you live it, you experience it and take it seriously but this too shall pass. And if we reach out across the barriers, I think we can pass this.
… maybe it starts with small gestures including having a modern orthodox Santa or appreciating and sharing holidays even if I don’t practice them myself.
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JM: Next, we’ll talk to the StoryCorps facilitator who recorded Santa Rick’s interview…and how… for her… the Santa of Christmas present revived a Santa from Christmas past…
That’s after this short break.
Stay with us.
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JM: Welcome back.
The Corps of StoryCorps…the c-o-r-p-s part…that’s the facilitators. They’re the ones on the ground, recording hundreds of interviews each week…they capture audio, ask follow-up questions…and most importantly, they listen with open ears… and an open hearts…
…often, they have no idea who they’ll meet in the booth or even what conversations they’ll be listening to…
…so when StoryCorps facilitator Brenda Ford sat down to record Santa Rick and his old friend… she wasn’t expecting to have the reaction she did…
Brenda Ford (BF): I have my headphones on and I’m listening and I had tears streaming down my face.
Listening to him talk made me think about my own dad. I’m a military kid and my dad was an aircraft scheduler and I don’t think he liked it very much but he was Santa Claus for whatever Air Force base we were stationed at. That was just a way, I think, to make his desk job bearable.
My dad was a really great Santa Claus. He took such care with the suit and just embodying the spirit but he was a really bad dad. He passed away in 2013 and, at that time, I had not seen him since I was 17 years old. Now I’m 47 years old.
So these things were in my head while I was recording Santa Rick. And when the interview was completed and I pushed stop on the recorder, Santa Rick just looked at me and he said ‘Are you crying?’ And, ‘If you don’t mind my asking, will you tell me why?’
So I told him that I was a daughter of Santa Claus and that I did not have my father anymore. And that it was hard the way things ended for my dad and me. He didn’t say anything; he just gave me a big hug and spending that time with Santa Rick was just another moment where all of the good things about my dad came back to life for a little while.
It just gave me hope that we’ll be okay.
JM: That’s StoryCorps facilitator Brenda Ford, sharing her experience of recording Santa Rick’s interview…and with that, we’ll leave you with some final words from the man himself…
RR: If you believe in the spirit of Christmas, it’s about loving life and loving people and understanding that, really, without each other, we’re lost.
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JM: That’s it for this week’s special holiday episode. It was produced by Jud Esty-Kendall, Sylvie Lubow and me. Santa Rick’s story was produced by Kelly Moffitt. Our engineer is Michael Raphael <RAY-fee-uhl>, script editor is Danielle Roth. Mitchell Cohen fact-checked this story. Special thanks to Daniel Horowitz Garcia and Brenda Ford.
If you want to leave a message for Santa Rick or Brenda… the number to call is 301 744 TALK. Keep those reviews and ratings coming wherever you download the show…
We love hearing from you. We read all of your comments! This one comes from a listener who first heard Santa Rick’s story on Morning Edition….
Cindy Klein wrote: Even though we’re Jewish, my brother and I always wanted to go sit on Santa’s lap when we were little. Circa 1962 my dad took us to Sears and there was Santa. My younger brother went first “What do you want for Christmas little boy?” Said Santa. My brother says “Nothing. I want Hanukkah presents. I’m Jewish.” Santa leans over and whispered in his ear, “Don’t tell anyone, but I’m Jewish too!” It’s a family story we tell every year!
For the StoryCorps podcast, I’m Jasmyn Morris. Thanks for listening. And happy holidays…whichever one you celebrate.
