Santa delivers ‘grand surprise’ to over 200 people in eastern Idaho through Operation Christmas Magic
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FORT HALL – For students at Shoshone-Bannock High School in Fort Hall, Christmas came a little early this year.
Santa Claus, with the help of Shelly Yorgeson and her team at Operation Christmas Magic — a nonprofit that provides holiday surprises for people around the world every year — delivered presents to the student body Monday afternoon.
“There were almost 300 people who came together last minute to make your day,” Yorgeson told the students before the gifts arrived.
The students wrote letters to Santa several weeks ago and he chose to grant their requests in person. He arrived in the bucket of a fire engine, with a truck pulling a trailer filled with 127 presents. That’s how many students attend the school and Santa’s elves handed them out one at a time with the letter they’d written attached to it.
Principal Matthew Wilson tells EastIdahoNews.com this effort means the world to these students, some of whom have difficult home lives. He’s grateful to Yorgeson and Operation Christmas Magic for making this happen.
“Some of them asked for very small things — stuff for their families, stuff for their brothers and sisters. They take care of each other so I thought this was really thoughtful,” Wilson says. “I absolutely loved seeing all the smiles and the kids’ excitement. It was a special moment just being recognized by our community.”
See their reactions and some of the highlights in the video above.
This Christmas delivery comes on the heels of a “grand surprise” that took place in Idaho Falls on Saturday. Through the help of many community sponsors, Operation Christmas Magic raised more than $20,000 to provide Christmas for 100 guests.
Though EastIdahoNews.com attended the giveaway, we aren’t releasing specific details about it because it’s an annual tradition that Yorgeson wants to keep secret.
The Idaho Falls woman spoke with us last week ahead of these surprises — one of her first media interviews since launching the organization a decade ago. It started as a family operation and now spans six countries and has hundreds of volunteers, many of whom wish to remain anonymous. We talked to some of them about their involvement over the years.
Allison Price and her husband have been a part of it since the beginning. Moments before Saturday’s giveaway, Allison said this is her family’s favorite part of Christmas and she enjoys seeing so many people volunteer.
“It’s life-changing for the people receiving the gifts for sure,” says Allison. “But there’s probably twice as many givers than there are recipients and that’s the coolest part.”
Leslie Grigg, whose family owns the company that invented the tater tot (watch for a story about it soon), is a first-time volunteer with Operation Christmas Magic. He met Yorgeson a few months ago and learned his cousin was one of her business partners. That connection prompted him to get involved.
It’s been an “exciting” experience for him and he’s happy to be part of it.
Other first-timers cited similar connections with Yorgeson. Though each of them had different reasons for signing up, they all expressed gratitude for blessings and a desire to bring a smile to someone in need.
There was lots of emotion on Saturday as Santa and his elves fulfilled the Christmas wishes of every guest who was there.
Through tears, a brother and sister hugged each other after receiving bedding, a pillow and some socks. A woman of Mexican descent hugged the lady who gave her a microwave and simply said, “Gracias.”
A little boy and girl approached Santa and gave him a hug for the stuffed animals they’d been given.
“We just want you to know there’s a lot of people who care about you,” Yorgeson told the recipients on Saturday. “There was someone in the community that noticed you. We work all year for this moment when we get to come in and surprise you with some joy and some love.”
After the giveaway, Yorgeson said it’s difficult to put into words how these yearly surprises make her feel. For her, it’s about so much more than sharing gifts, it’s about “love and unity” and the miracles that happen when people work together.
Santa summed it up in his response to a young father who thanked him for the gift his son received.
“We make dreams come true,” Santa said.