Santa Claus

From the editorial page of The New York Sun, written by Francis P. Church, Sept. 21, 1897. We take pleasure in answering thus prominently the communication below, expressing at the same time our great gratification that its faithful author is numbered among the friends of The Sun: "Dear Editor -- I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. Papa says, 'If you see it in The Sun, it's so.' Please tell me the truth, is there a Santa Claus?

On Christmas Day, you reprinted a famous response to a child's question, "Is there a Santa Claus?" A sincere request from a bright child. The editor's response? A corrupt, evil lie. It is time to give Virginia an honest answer. Dear Virginia, Your little friends are right. I am afraid that Mr. Church has been affected by the foolishness of an increasingly irrational era. Your friends know quite well that they should believe only that which can be shown to be true.

Darleene Barrientos Glendale Police surrounded an alley north of San Fernando Road near Justin Avenue on Tuesday to bring a wanted man to the clients of the Glendale Assn. for the Retarded during its Self-Aid Workshop. Led by two Glendale Police motorcycle officers, Santa Claus rode into the alley in the department's Special Response Team vehicle to applause and cheers from the association's 60 clients and 22 special-education students from Hoover High School and Toll Middle School.

Midge Boardman, Enjoy! LA CANADA FLINTRIDGE -- Sometimes it seems men get all the credit. Take Santa Claus, for instance. That jolly old man appears in stories and songs. His picture graces everything from greeting cards to billboards. Tens of thousands of children leave cookies and milk for him on Christmas Eve. Good for him. But his mother never gets any credit. Well, Bo Collier is changing all that. The longtime Glendale resident, who recently moved to La Canada Flintridge, has brought Mother Christmas to life in a warm, funny, touching story, "The Truth About Love."

Small but happy crowd turns out for annual Christmas event in historic neighborhood.SOUTHEAST GLENDALE -- Christmas came a little early this year to the historic Adams Square. And despite a slim turnout, organizers of the fifth annual Santa Claus Comes to Adams Square event Saturday were pleased with the local residents who did show up for the holiday festivities. "We may not have gotten a lot, but what we got is important," said Carol Cianfrini, a board member of the Adams Square Merchants Assn.

After an abrupt absence of about six months, former La Crescenta Elementary Principal Terry Dutton made a surprise visit to the school. Dutton, who began as La Crescenta Elementary's principal in Sept. 2004, had almost completed a successful first year with high test scores and a strong emphasis on science when he suddenly fell ill. The 2004-2005 school year was just weeks away from ending when Dutton was taken to the emergency room at Huntington Hospital in Pasadena. That day in June was the last time many students saw their principal.

December can be a rough month. The stress, the obligations, the gift anxiety, and the memories of friends and family whose addresses no card will reach often make me long for January. All the talk of peace and joy makes tragedies loom so much bigger, and my heart breaks for the nearly 30 people killed - 20 of them children - in a horrific and senseless act of violence at a Connecticut elementary school Friday. I'm certain a fund will be set up to help the victims, and I urge anyone to offer any support they can - even if it's just a prayer.

The La Crescenta Woman's Club Junior Section just held one of the earlier Breakfasts with Santa in the holiday season. On Saturday (Dec. 8), the clubhouse was jumpin' with a holiday buffet, live music, door prizes, opportunity prizes and gifts and crafts for each child to make. All of this was available for $10 per person. This annual event is looked forward to by moms who don't have their Christmas card photos ready. Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus were at the ready to remedy the situation.

The good weather made the Montrose Christmas Tree Lighting Festival a great success. A snow-making machine helped make Honolulu Avenue feel like a winter wonderland. I saw little kids and bigger kids with gray hair throwing snowballs. One even hit one of the carolers, right in the middle of one of my favorite songs. Behind the scenes, Santa's elves, Steve Pierce and Linda McMenamin, were busy making sure all the equipment was being moved into place. They and the other merchants helped make sure the streets and sidewalks were clean before the first snowball hit the ground.

In response to the letter from Mary Martin (“Montrose Christmas tree is shameful,” Dec. 12), I also don't especially like this tree, but not knowing where it came from, who chose this tree or how much it cost, I am happy to put up with it. Our great little town of Montrose has the Christmas parade, trolley rides, Christmas bands and, of course, Santa Claus. Perhaps after budgeting for all of these wonderful things, that was the only affordable tree. In these tough economic times, we should be happy we even have a Christmas tree!

A couple of weeks ago I was in the Glendale Galleria when I heard a little boy utter one of the most sinister phrases of the holiday: “There is no such thing as Santa Claus!” As soon as I heard that terrible string of words, I knew I had to use my journalistic superpowers to stop the spread of this annual vicious rumor. This week's topic is for you parents with kids who are unsure what to believe. I urge you to make this column mandatory reading, because I pulled off a literary coup.

It was a new take on Santa Thursday night at the Americana at Brand's fourth annual tree lighting ceremony, with aerialist and acrobatic performances putting a modern stamp on classic characters like the Nutcracker and toy soldiers. The “Cirque du Santa” event featured fireworks, music and the big man himself, Santa Claus, as the mega-outdoor mall heralded the holiday shopping season. The 100-foot-tall white fir was covered in 10,000 lights and 15,000 ornaments for the occasion.

Editor's Note: Numerous instances of plagiarism have been discovered in Dan Kimber's “Education Matters” column, which ran in the News- Press from September 2003 to September 2011. In those columns where plagiarism has been found, a For the Record specifying the details will be appended to the piece. One of the more unusual Christmas gifts I've ever received came from a student several years back. It was a 2-foot high Bing Crosby in a Santa suit with a pipe in one hand and a microphone clutched in the other.

MONTROSE — While more than 100 entries made their way down Honolulu Avenue on Saturday evening, most families in attendance were waiting to see one particular participant. "We want to see Santa fly over," said La Crescenta resident Andrea Cabalo who sat with her 6-year-old son Nicholas. The Cabalo family joined thousands of people who lined Honolulu Avenue between Verdugo Road and Rosemont Avenue for the 34th annual Montrose Christmas Parade. "It's an absolutely wonderful tradition — a great way to start the Christmas season," Cabalo said.

Character actress Louise Dresser and her husband, Jack Gardner, lived in Glendale for many years. As a young girl, the former Lulu Kerlin grew up singing in choirs and shows. As a teen, she ran away from home, setting her sights on vaudeville, according to imdb.com . Her contralto voice brought her to the attention of Tin Pan Alley composer Paul Dresser, who changed her stage name to Louise Dresser. She sang his biggest hit, “My Gal Sal.” Dresser made it to Broadway, debuting in “About Town” in 1906.

A mile south of glittering skyscrapers, a Crescenta Valley family of three joined roughly 60 volunteers who spent Thursday morning in Skid Row distributing clothes, hygiene kits, sleeping bags and more to needy families. There were fears going into it, Caroline McKiernan said, but any anxiety evaporated upon arrival. ?I cried when I got here,? she said. ?I am glad my daughter can see what Christmas is about.? McKiernan, a Valley View Elementary School parent, had been collecting items for a month, she said.