“And those little kids said, ‘My mom told me that she helped you when she was in Crofton!” Thunker realized that the children’s mother used to help the Santa in Crofton get his horse and buggy ready for the big Christmas event. “I plum forgot about it,” Dale said. “But, what was cool about it, those kids, their little grade school pictures, they sent them to me. And they wrote a note on it … ‘Mommy, I love you,’ and ‘Tell her ‘Hi!’” Thunker has been given many mementos over the years by both parents and children, including photos, drawings, letters to Santa and Christmas lists — and he has saved them all, and may even bring them with him as Santa the next Christmas to show the little sender that he got their gift. “What we do is we get a list of about 10 families together,” Thunker said. We’ll give them the heads up a couple of days ahead and say, ’Santa is going to be in the area. Be prepared and get your camera ready.” Thunker doesn’t always know what to expect when he arrives. He may talk to the children, pass out candy or hand out presents that the parents left outside the door. “Once we went to (Terri’s) cousins and it was unexpected,” Thunker said. “We just went because we were right next door. Santa can some anytime, you never know. The little kids were just coming out of the tub, having their towels on and they are sitting on my lap, and they are shivering, but they are telling Santa Claus what they want for Christmas — talk about pictures. We’re bringing a lot of memories to a lot of families.” Sometimes, being Santa is as easy as walking up and down his street handing out candy canes. Usually, Terri calls the parents from the car, about ten minutes ahead, to let them know that Santa is coming. One year, on the way to a familiar street, the Thunkers wound up searching for the familiar house, on what seemed like the wrong street. “I drive,” Terri Thunker said. “And I’m like, ‘Where in the heck are we? There was a car behind me or some kids walking, and he said, ‘Just stop. Let me out. I’ll figure it out.’” “I told Mrs. Claus that you might want to call and make sure,” Thunker said. “When I’m walking into the place, I’m going, ‘this isn’t the right 605 we’re supposed to be at. But it’s like someone’s grabbing me by the arm, pushing me to ring the doorbell. Anyway, I did it.” At this point in the story Thunker became emotional, so his wife continued the story. “He goes in, and there’s this woman with this beautiful lab dog and these three little kids looking at him,” Terri Thunker said. “Usually, they are our friends and he’ll grab the kids and put them on his lap, but these were strangers.” So Thunker played Santa by standing near the Christmas tree and asking the children what they wanted. Once the Thunkers found the right house, Terri told to her friend how Santa had gone to the wrong house. The next day, she got a visit from that friend, who told her that the house Santa had visited the night before belonged to a woman whose husband had just left her three days before. vSANTA continued on page14 Peak flu season is right around the corner. Vaccinate today, and make sure you’re protected. Walk-In Flu Shots (Must be 18 or older) No appointment necessary Byron, R.Ph. 218 W. 4th Street, Yankton, SD • 605.665.8042 • www.rogersfamilypharmacy.com HISVOICEvNOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2018v13