Moments by Andrea

Thank you too the almost 50 families that came out on Saturday, December 3rd for the two hour only Santa Portrait Fundraiser event at the New England Historical Connection on Rt. 7! The event was organized to raise money for the Wilton Social Services “Wilton Interfaith Fund” to help Wilton families in need. This particular event was to help fund their Secret Santa program for the children of the struggling families. This time of year we feel so blessed to be able to provide such an abundance of gifts for our children. The thought of not being able to do that encourage us to organize this event.It could be any of us to lose a job or experience a tragedy that puts us in a position where we are fighting to make it day to day.

Thank you to Jeena Choi, Frank Kwei, Megan Abrahamson, John Schnefke and the one and only Skip “Santa” Heydt for their support and participation in promoting and running the event! Announced only via facebook and a couple of preschool flyers this event was a HUGE SUCCESS! Who would have thought that we could raise $900 in just two hours of pictures!  It was a MAGICAL experience that I enjoyed so  much! You know when you do something that is meant to be “good and selfless” and feel “bad” because you got so much out of it! That was this experience.

Last year I heard about this Secret Santa program through my Mom’s group and made an average donation. This year when I heard that my friends at Babycat Milkbar and Blue Star Bazaar that Santa was donating his time to come and take pictures with kids I jumped at the opportunity to participate so that we could raise money for Secret Santa. It was one of those things that just came together so naturally and coincidentally as we each were at the Milkbar the same day and the idea grew. I recently read a quote “If you work really hard and be kind, amazing things will happen to you!”. Well, here is proof positive. I think raising $900 in TWO HOURS is an amazing thing and I am thrilled!

Parents were welcome to take their own pictures or for a small donation, I would take the pictures and post them for free use via Shutterfly. Suggested donation was $10 but for anyone that donated $20 they would be entered into a raffle for a free session. Thirty two families donated $20 or more and the winner was drawn via a Random selection electronically. The winner was Rosanna Coughlin! Congrats to her! In the end I think we were all winners though. The reactions on the children’s faces to meet what looked like the real Santa in an environment that was so comfortable, nothing like the mall experience, was what made the event so special.

Oh you should have been there when Santa burst into the room at 3pm with a boisterous “Ho Ho Ho”. The looks on the children’s faces and the feeling the little girl inside me got was priceless! The warm cozy home environment of this lovely historical home (now an antique reproduction furniture store) made the experience so unique. Santa “Skips” interpretation of the big man was unbelievable! The expressions we captured on his face when interacting with the children showed how much he truly loves his “job”. The face that he did this UNPAID two hour “gig” in between two very long and paid gigs shows his dedication to the Christmas spirit and to our community! We were so blessed for his participation as of course, this event would not have been possible without him!

The feed back from the parents has been unbelievable.  I loved hearing stories from moms like my friends/clients like  Jen who commented that her six-year old said (on the way out the door) “Mom, was that the REAL Santa?”. THAT is why Skip does what he does, to keep the magic alive! In the days following the event I received several emails and facebook comments expressing what this friend said “It was a wonderful event. So much better than hitting the mall. Thanks a million for organizing!” and from another client/friend “Beautiful setting, wonderful Santa, and we can’t wait to see the photos! Thank you!”. My response.. “Thank YOU for coming and supporting the charity!”. Will we do this next year? I hope so! We’ll see!

Enjoy a few of the sneak peaks from the event. My favorites are the ones with the crying babies and funny looks on faces, just did not feel right posting the really crying ones. Also check out this lovely article written by a talented local freelance write for the Wilton Patch. http://wilton.patch.com/articles/wilton-small-businesses-show-true-ho-ho-holiday-spirit. Thank you Heather for sharing our story with the community!