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About Be An Elf page.

UPDATE
Operation Santa available only in New York City and Chicago

A NBC Nightly News video on December 19th and an Associated Press story of December 20th reported that the USPS briefly closed its 96 year old Operation Santa program due to concerns over children's privacy. The Postal Service resumed the program December 20th, but only in Chicago and in New York City, and with tighter controls. Children's addresses would be removed from their letters, a number would be assigned to each letter, and volunteers could return to the post office with their gifts. Postal workers will then ship the gifts on to children.

From the AP December 20th story: "A sex offender is responsible for taking away some of the joy of the Postal Service's Operation Santa program: Volunteers who answer children's letters to Santa can no longer deliver gifts in person — or even know where they're going. The program resumed Saturday morning in New York and Chicago, three days after it was abruptly suspended after a postal worker in Maryland recognized one volunteer as a registered offender. A postal inspector intervened before the individual could answer a child's letter, but officials decided changes had to be made."

Be An Elf hopes to work with the USPS starting in 2009 to develop new software which will allow the Postal Service to remove children's addresses and post thousands of letters from low income children online, perhaps at this website. When a volunteer clicks on "Send a gift", a shipping label with a barcode would be printed out with no address. Only post office scanners could decipher the barcode and then deliver the gift, perhaps even with no postage needed.

You will find addresses for the last remaining Operation Santa branches open, one in Chicago and one in New York City, in our Directory.

If you do not live in those cities, here are suggestions for other ways to volunteer.

Your gift will help us develop new software to protect children's privacy.

Donations online are tax-deductible, and may be made anonymously.

Please donate now!

 

Our former About page is below.

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About Be An Elf

Every year, in a handful of US cities there are "elves" who visit their main Post Office and ask to read children's letters to Santa. They select a few letters, mostly written by children who clearly have fewer privileges than other kids. One little girl wrote,

Dear Santa,

My family is not perfect. My Mom needs money to pay bills. She believes in what we have. I believe in what's in my heart. Our furniture don't match. Our fridge and oven don't work a little. She prays for me. My Mom is sad. Please help.

Sincerely, Katrina

The elves show photo ID and sign a form requiring a verified address at the post office, in order to get access to the letters.

The USPS' Operation Santa program is not available in all US cities. See our How to Be An Elf page to learn whether it's offered in your city. Let us know if it is, so we can post it in our fledgling new Directory. We are hoping to partner with the USPS on the content of this website in future.

In participating cities, volunteers select one or more letters to Santa, purchase gifts for the family, and make sure the kids receive presents from Santa by Christmas Day.

They often buy something for the Moms and siblings, too. Companies also can take letters back to employees wishing to participate.

Hans Dohm is one such elf. Every year in December, Hans visits a certain post office branch he knows that offers the program in his city. He selects a few letters to Santa clearly written by children in need. He chose Katrina's letter above in 2004.

After selecting several letters to respond to, Hans and his lady shop for gifts, wrap them at home, and deliver the gifts personally on Christmas eve, during daylight hours. See the YouTube video of Hans on our home page! Gifts may also be mailed.

Be An Elf hopes to inspire you to join us and do what Hans does -- Be an Elf for Santa at Christmas!

The Postal Service calls its wonderful program Operation Santa, and the venerable USPS has been making children's letters available to the public for charitable purposes since 1912.

The USPS sends out press releases every year, yet few Americans have heard of Operation Santa. Be An Elf hopes to work together with the USPS to change that.

An online search of the phrase Operation Santa shows a mix of mostly local websites, some linking to retail products. There is no national directory; we hope the USPS will create one. Until then we will rely on emails from volunteers to build our own directory.

For now, the most reliable way to find out which local post office branches offer Operation Santa in your city is to call the manager of your local postal branch.

Not everyone under the manager level may know where the program is in your city, or if your city even offers it.

Soon we hope to begin working with (or for) the Postal Service to support their efforts.

We want more people to know about Operation Santa, and be able to quickly find our if the program is offered in their city, and which branches offer it.

Our organization was conceived when Patrick Reynolds first accompanied Hans Dohm for his gift deliveries on Christmas Eve, 2004. Patrick took photos, and on December 24, 2006, shot video of Hans' deliveries to families. The video was edited and posted on YouTube in December, 2007.

Today Hans Dohm runs a small but growing LED business, Mastlite, in South Carolina. Mr. Reynolds is Executive Director of The Foundation for a Smokefree America. Be An Elf's mission is unrelated to his other work for the tobacco free cause.

Hopefully, Be An Elf, working for or jointly with the USPS, will bring a brighter, happier Christmas to thousands of underprivileged children and their families.

Eventually we hope to create web pages in different languages, detailing the policy of the postal services of other nations.

With the USPS' approval, we may also offer a list of orphanages and organizations serving at-risk youth, searchable by zip code. Gifts could also be sent here.

To achieve our goals, we are now seeking private donors and corporate sponsors, and above all, the collaboration of the USPS.

If you wish, take a look at our future plans.

Many thanks for taking time to learn more about our group.

If you'd like to volunteer and be an elf, just see our How to Be an Elf page.

If you don't have time, other ways to help are sending a message to your friends, or making a donation. Your gift to Be An Elf will further our mission and help us recruit new volunteers. It will also help us develop new software to protect kids.

But the best way to be of service is to volunteer, and be an elf!

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