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Dear Editor,

I believe it is customary in your paper for notes of thanks to the general public to be sent in the form of Letters to the Editor, and I am the last person in the world who would buck tradition.

We have received more Dear Santa letters than we could have hoped for! There are a few days left, and children of Macon can still send, drop, or email letters until the end of Friday, December 14. But the letter-writing campaign has already been an overwhelming success.

There are a few people in Macon that I’d like to thank for their part in this. Because of their efforts, we now know what every single child in Macon County wants for Christmas—with the exception of maybe a few dozen.

Santa Claus, LLC, and all subsidiaries (N. Pole Processing, N. Pole Bakery Division, Elves R We (grammar-sensitive toy products), ‘Claus 1’ Attorney Group, and all major toy factories in the Upper Fantasy Region of the North Pole), would like to thank the following:

*The Macon County school system. If teachers had not spent their time and energy making sure that every Monster High doll and BB gun was put on paper in their classrooms, those toy orders would never have gone on the books here. If school principals and administration had not gotten word out and gathered all these delightful notes together, we would never have seen them. Thank you.

*Thank you to the parents of Macon County, who taught their children about the existence of myself. They also sat with their children, taking dictation so that I could actually read the toy requests once they came. Then they brought the letters to the Times’ office on behalf of the children who were too small, from what I understand, to qualify for an American drivers license. Thank you.

*Thank you to the children of Macon County, who generate enough Christmas Spirit to supply energy for 850 miles of my trip, easily. You, who always ask me to remember your brother or sister or grandmother or mommy and daddy, and who promise me again and again that you will have cookies and milk waiting—you make the longest flight in the world worthwhile. Thank you.

*Thanks to the Times, for your support and help; N. Pole Processing always informs me that your packages are well organized and properly formatted.

Thank you all,

Santa Claus, Father Christmas, St. Nicholas, Sinterklaas, etc, etc.