For nearly three decades, a Calgary man has served as one of Santa Claus's most dedicated digital helpers. Now, he is sharing the profound, funny, and heartbreaking messages he has received from children across the globe in a new published collection.
A Digital Portal to the North Pole
Since 1997, Calgarian Alan Kerr has operated EmailSanta.com, a popular website that allows children to send their Christmas wishes directly to the North Pole. Over the years, Kerr estimates the site has received a staggering 25 million letters from young correspondents worldwide.
While many messages are filled with classic holiday requests and humorous anecdotes, Kerr has found that children often confide in Santa with a startling level of honesty. The letters reveal a wide range of childhood experiences, from the joy of anticipation to the pain of grief, bullying, illness, and family hardship.
"They trust Santa," Kerr explained. "They tell Santa things that they wouldn't tell anybody else in the world."
The Emotional Weight of a Santa's Helper
Kerr admits that reading such a vast spectrum of human emotion, day after day, carries a significant weight. The role is an emotional roller coaster, where a laugh-out-loud request to turn a sibling into a potato can be immediately followed by a plea from a child dealing with cancer or loss.
One letter, in particular, remains etched in his memory: a message from a nine-year-old girl seeking comfort after her brother, father, and uncle all died within the same year. "That's what made me realize how important that part of Santa's job is," Kerr reflected, "to be someone that children can talk to, so that they feel like they're being listened to."
Sharing the Magic in a New Book
Despite the challenges, Kerr says the children's letters are also what renew his spirit and sense of wonder. "When I go back and I look through the letters, you find that magic again," he said, describing the work as a true calling shared by Santa's helpers everywhere.
To share that magic with a wider audience, Kerr has compiled 1,000 of the most memorable letters into a new book titled Dear Santa, Letters to emailSanta.com Vol. I: 1,000 Hilarious Kids' Letters to Santa. The collection primarily highlights the funny and heartwarming notes but also includes some of the more serious correspondences to show the full scope of his experience.
"I'm getting all these wonderful letters from kids all over the world, but I'm the only one who gets to see them," Kerr said of his motivation. "It's like, these have to be shared. People have to see these."
The book serves as a testament to a unique Calgary-born project that has connected with millions, capturing the unfiltered hopes, fears, and holiday spirit of children across generations.
