Santas on demand, direct to your door

By Brendan Buhler

Thursday, Dec. 25, 2008 | 2 a.m.

Say you don’t have a chimney. Or perhaps, as a jaded adult, you do not trust in the costumed melding of Nordic tradition and Christianity.

But say the kids do.

Well, by day’s end your children may have learned a harsh but perhaps necessary lesson about the world.

But in other families, the dream remains alive. Those savvy parents rented Santas.

This brings us to Leonard Ray, who’s 79, has a real beard and has been Santa-ing for more than 20 years. He goes for $100 an hour during most of the Christmas season, though Christmas Eve goes for $150 to $200 and today fetches a premium $200 to $250.

Ray has three pieces of advice for would-be Santas. First, you’ve got to love children and be good with them. Second, children are smarter than most people think they are. Third, “you always got to be clean — no drinking, no smoking, ever. Not ever.”

For all the requests he’s received over the years, he won’t soon forget the little girl whose grandmother died that very day. “She wanted me to bring her grandmother back.”

Ray had to explain that Santa doesn’t have that power.

Santas differ on the effects of the recession. Ray says his business is as good as it’s ever been, but Tamara Soundbakhsh who’s 1-year-old business, A Company of Characters, provides birthday and holiday entertainment, said the economy has cut into her business. Her Santas are somewhat younger than Ray, but one said he is enjoying the season.

“My mom’s friend, she owns the business and asked me if I could help out the community and whatever, so I said OK,” said Devid Kelfh. This Santa is 17.

He’s done one Santa job so far, which he says was fine, even though it was at a middle school.

He said he looked forward to a job later on Christmas Eve with a family, where he would hand out presents and play games. And presumably get some cookies for his efforts.