Here comes Santa Claus

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Here comes Santa Claus

Around Osceola

Wednesday, 08 December 2010 00:00

By Rick Madewell
Assistant Editor
Santa Claus is as real as it gets when children’s faces light up at the very sight of the jolly old elf.
It’s practically what Dave Johnson lives for.
This year will be the 30th year Johnson has donned that magnificent red coat, bellied up some “Ho-ho-ho’s” and given some great joys to a group of atypical children.
But Johnson, now 73 and semi-retired, will be the first to say that he probably gets so much more out of it personally than anyone else.
“It makes my heart feel good to do something for the children that do not get to go anywhere much,” Johnson said.
Since 1980, Johnson, a North Carolina native, and some of his airboat buddies have zipped through the waters fronting East Lake Fish Camp between St. Cloud and Kissimmee to meet with the group of mentally handicapped children from the Russell Home for Atypical Children in Orlando.
Santa will return to the shores of East Lake Fish Camp between 9 and 9:30 a.m. Saturday to hand out presents to the children. Johnson said area residents are invited to come out to the Fish Camp and share in the experience.
According to Johnson, about 20-25 children are brought from the home and treated to breakfast before Santa makes his appearance.
A grand entrance will feature Johnson emerging from a group of running airboats along the river, courtesy of the Osceola Airboaters Association, of which Johnson is a member. He will then move onto a carriage and be taken to the beaming children at the fish camp. They all are thrilled at his arrival, he said.
At some point, Johnson, who said he truly feels like Santa while doing this, and the other airboaters will hand over a $500 contribution to the Russell Home owners, as they have done practically every year since first making the special appearance.
Johnson’s wife, Carol, helps with the event. And all of their own children think what he’s doing is “great.”
Johnson said he still recalls the very first year he did this for the Russell Home children.
“It was very emotional,” he said. “If you watch something like that and you have a very tender heart then, well…”
The Fish Camp Santa will make other trips to the home throughout the year in regular clothing to drop off supplies and donations, and to check on the children.
“I have good relationship with the children and have seen them grow up over the years,” he said. “They are happy to see people visit them.”
Johnson said the Russell Home, a very large, old house, is run by donations. It has been in continuous operation for more than 50 years without any government support and, according to its website, is the only private, non-profit facility of its kind for severely handicapped children in Central Florida.
Its website — www.russellhome.org — offers this year’s Christmas wish list from the children who live there and information about large and small items needed by the home. Home officials say on the website that many requests from the public prompted them to post the information. A phone number and address also are listed on the website.