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In films from the 1970s onward, we have seen the stereotypical workaholic transformed into Santa Claus—after meeting the joyful spirit of Christmas, whether that spirit comes as a gregarious king, a toy factory in the North Pole, a special mix of hot cocoa (shaken, not stirred), or an old man in a department store claiming to be Santa Claus himself.
Steve Adams took the spirit of Christmas completely to heart—but his transformation into Santa Claus was preceded by several years of hating Christmas, after his children had grown. He observed “people buying gifts just for the purpose of buying gifts” and stores advertising their Christmas wares “around Labor Day.” He concluded with disgust that the celebration of Christ’s birth had morphed into competitions for special sales on Black Friday, and identified with a photo of Santa captioned, “Slow down! Eat the darn turkey first!”
Steve had never been one to take meaningful gifts or meaningful days for granted. As a child, he was diagnosed with “contracted heel cords.” He had physical therapy twice weekly, over eighteen months–a hard expense for his middle-class family. His father worked two jobs to meet basic expenses as well as the cost of doctors stretching Steve’s short heel cords. The doctors tried many painful remedies, but nothing worked. Every step Steve took was painful, and his gait was strange to other children, who bullied him. But even as a young man, Steve learned that service could be a distraction from the constant pain. So he “buried [himself] in service to others, trying to make their lives easier.”
In 1968, facing the draft for the Vietnam War, Steve Adams chose to enlist in the military, which offered him educational benefits. He was accepted–even with his doctors’ notes describing his disability. While he was honorably serving, the military and three private orthopedic doctors predicted he would not have use of his legs by his 35th birthday. Later, doctors determined that he was suffering from a form of Cerebral Palsy. At age sixty-seven, though he has limitations, he is still mobile. His pain has not gone away but has become simply a life companion.
The pain of what Christmas had become was on a different level, though—a spiritual level. Throughout his growing-up years, he had cherished special days, which was precisely why he saw the commercializing of Christmas as offensive. He had to choose whether to dread the holiday season or to find a way to enjoy it. That was when he decided he would become Santa Claus—but not just any Santa Claus. He set his own standards. He would never accept payment for his appearances, and he would focus on children who would not normally receive a visit from Santa. He chose to do this transformation not with a fake white beard, but to actually grow out his hair and beard and then have them dyed white.
It was a detailed process. But the results were magnificent. Children started approaching him, wide-eyed and eager. Steve’s wife, Sharon, was stunned by the beautiful spirit which filled their home as Santa Steve started this new adventure. And soon, she was brought into the fun. “I am not one to be in the spotlight,” she explains, “so I would stay in the background. Then everyone kept asking me if I was Mrs. Claus. I told them I was just his helper. But one day, my sister crocheted me a beautiful cloak. She said, ‘This is for you.’ Since then, going as Mrs. Claus has opened my eyes and heart to the joy you feel when you see the children and hear their stories. Even the adults get giddy and enjoy seeing both of us. You truly feel the love of Christ that comes through the joy of serving others.”
And Steve experienced a miracle as he began spreading Christmas cheer. He describes it thus:
My every step has had pain for years since birth. As more birthday candles go on the cake, the pain has increased. Before going out as Santa I take 800 to 1000 mg of ibuprofen, pray for reduction of pain, and go forward. With VERY few exceptions once I start being Santa, the pain goes away. As soon as I try to get back into our vehicle, the pain returns.
He could not have anticipated the small miracles he’d see among the children—perhaps the most gratifying aspect of his new approach to Christmas. Once when he and his wife visited a classroom, Steve greeted the children, and quickly identified a very active boy as a “challenge.” Steve spoke to the children, listened to their hopeful wishes, passed out candy canes, and left.
But then the boy–the “challenge”–darted out of the classroom and grabbed Steve and Sharon. The boy insisted that they return to the classroom, and forcefully pulled them back in. They could only imagine what this child had in mind. They had seen the boy’s hyper-activity, but not the softness of his heart. A little girl in a wheelchair had been in her special needs class during Santa’s visit, and this boy knew she wanted to see Santa and Mrs. Claus. She was putting on her coat when she saw the jolly couple. Her eyes lit up, and she excitedly rolled her wheelchair to Santa Steve. When he picked her up (with her teacher’s permission), she threw her arms around him. “She just held on,” Steve says, “smiling and laughing.” The challenging boy simply watched with a satisfied smile.
There were also heart-wrenching moments when Santa Steve had to be strong enough to bring happiness and hope, and not to break down into sobs. One of these moments happened recently, when Santa Steve visited a family with six children under age eight, and another child on the way. The father of the family, a former seminary teacher, had been diagnosed with terminal brain cancer. He had only weeks left in mortality. Mr. and Mrs. Santa Claus paid the family a visit and shared smiles at this time of anxiety and grief. The children were given a few minutes of complete joy. Steve muses, “When children want a Christmas gift that is beyond what I can do—such as the healing of a parent or a sibling—I have to answer that I can do only some things. Christ, however, can do all things.
What has Christmas adventure done for Steve and Sharon Adams?
“When I put on my Santa clothes (even casual Santa),” says Steve, “and I go into stores, restaurants, medical clinics, the Provo Rec Center, Veterans’ homes, schools, non-profit’s, etc. the moment I see a child or even an adult, I see their eyes come wide open. I see the smile on their face. They come running to me–even those who are shy. We’ll bring small stuffed animals and hold them up and ask the shy ones if they would like to take care of this stuffed toy. Almost always, they come to at least Mrs. Claus and take the animal, and leave with a smile on their faces and in their eyes. “
Sharon Adams says that their Christmases have completely changed. They look forward to Christmas with happy anticipation, and make improvements every year. This year, Steve’s truck has antlers and a sign on the back: “Santa Steve’s Sleigh.”
In 1970, the classic Dickens tale A Christmas Carol turned into a musical, ending with Scrooge dressing up as Santa Claus. In the film, The Santa Clause, a toy manufacturer discovers that the suit itself obligates him to become Santa—something he learns to love. And surely Hallmark will continue to make movies about workaholics going from their daily calendars which barely acknowledge Christmas, to a Santa suit, and finally to singing “Joy to the World” at the climactic moment.
As for Steve Adams, the Santa suit and all that comes with it is a reminder of the core purpose of life here and beyond: to have and to share “good will toward men.” He says, “My being Santa allows the children to have a few minutes of joy and happiness. When I walk into stores, drive down the street, perform Santa gigs, and someone—including adults—when they see me, they wave. We wish them a Merry Christmas, and we see their eyes light up and a smile appear. Spreading joy may be a simple thing, just another way of being kind to people, especially to kids.”
The words which Charles Dickens used to describe Scrooge’s transformation apply to Steve Adams, and invite all of us to find a way back to the Christmas spirit if we have somehow lost it. “[E]ver afterwards it was always said of him that he knew how to keep Christmas well, if any man alive possessed the knowledge. May that be truly said of us, and all of us! And so, as Tiny Tim observed, God bless Us, Every One!”
Doug HollowellAugust 3, 2020
My wife and I have known Steve and Sharon since the early 1980’s. They were as kind then as they are now. In my book, anyone who goes out looking for children, with the intent to help them live their Christmas fantasy, has a great reward waiting for them when they leave here!!Thank you Steve and Sharon for your selfless service. Doug &Suzanne Hollowell
Margaret Blair YoungDecember 15, 2016
I had such a fun time photographing Steve throughout the year as he transformed himself into Santa. And how I loved interviewing him and his lovely wife, Sharon! Thank you, Steve, for your good heart and your determination to do good things.