I used this to mail out all my Xmas cards this year.
POST OFFICE TO SANTA: WRITE BACK EARLY
THE NORTH POLE – You are six years old. Your Mom and Dad bring in the mail. They hand
you a letter with a North Pole postmark. You open the letter. It's more than Santa’s response to
the wish list you sent him – it’s a memory of a lifetime.
The Postal Service is helping you create and preserve this memory for your child. Here's how it
works. Work with your child as they write their letter to Santa. Secretly craft a response from
Santa and mail it in a second envelope to North Pole, Alaska Post Office. The Postal elves will
postmark and mail Santa’s response back to your child. To make this holiday activity especially
enjoyable, follow these suggested guidelines.
·
Beyond the traditional, “here’s what I want” list, ask your child to write why the holiday
season is special.
·
Teach the child that proper addressing techniques include a return address -- otherwise
Santa may not write back.
·
After you take the letter and tell the child you’ll mail it, keep it in a safe place until you can
write Santa’s response. If your child recognizes your handwriting, ask a friend or neighbor
to rewrite it.
·
To make Santa’s response extra special, beyond reminding the child that Santa knows if
they’ve been bad or good, add a positive line or two about the child’s recent
accomplishment that was not included in the letter to Santa.
·
As a P.S., Santa might want to remind the child to be in bed at a certain hour, and hint that
he and his reindeer appreciate holiday snacks left near the tree.
·
Place Santa’s response in a stamped envelope addressed to the child, and be sure to
include the North Pole as the return address.
·
Place this envelope into a larger, properly stamped, First-Class Mail or Priority Mail
envelope and mail it to:
North Pole Christmas Cancellation
Postmaster
5400 Mail Trail
Fairbanks AK 99709-9998
The North Pole Post Office will postmark Santa’s reply and place it in the mail stream.
·
Make sure your camera’s ready to record the excitement.
·
Save your child’s letter, Santa’s response, and the photo.
Present them to your child years later in an album as a special gift.
North Pole postmark requests must arrive in Fairbanks before December 15, 2003. As it gets
closer to the holidays, consider mailing requests via Express Mail.