The father of two added that NORAD’s Santa monitoring ritual, which has been in place for decades, “brings a smile, every time.”
The spirit of the holidays is brought home and made visible, he said, “and it’s an escape for the kids and parents.”
An accident in 1955 led to the start of the enduring custom. A youngster called the number listed in the newspaper after seeing an advertising from Sears urging children to phone Santa.
According to an update, “Santa usually arrives between 9:00 p.m. and midnight local time … when children are asleep.” The department shop didn’t answer his phone, however.
The Continental Air Defense Command (now NORAD), a combined U.S. and Canadian endeavor to identify possible foreign attacks, received it instead.
When Air Force Col. Harry Shoup answered the phone, he heard a little child requesting Santa. Shoup was on duty at the time.
