ORANGE COUNTY, Calif. — It was a Christmas Miracle!

Santa Claus and Mrs. Claus have been located in Southern California, and they have been doing a lot of writing from what might have been the North Pole Mail Headquarters — which happened to be at an undisclosed location in Orange County.

Letter after letter, kids have been busy getting their wish lists into a mailbox outside a home in Orange County.

This year Nyla, asked for, “a big scooter!” 

When she heard back from Santa Claus, Nyla was beyond excited.

Just as excited Nyla was to hear back from Santa, it was beyond busy at the North Pole Mail Headquarters as a woman rifled through a box full of letters from people of all ages in Orange County. The woman was of course Mrs. Claus, who asked Spectrum News 1 not to show her face on television so she could keep her identity a secret.

Mrs. Claus was in Orange County as the official North Pole letter writer.

“Santa Claus is so busy. I mean even during COVID, Santa Claus is still going be at everybody’s house, but he needs more help than ever this year,” said Mrs. Claus.

This year, Mrs. Claus wrote hundreds of letters. 

“The kids have missed so much this year with COVID going on,” she said.

For that reason, Mrs. Claus was on a mission to provide something special during an especially difficult year. It was not just a handwritten letter that she gave each person who wrote to Santa, but she put together packets that came with extras, including: a game, sweet treat, and maybe a book.

Mrs. Claus labeled each packet, a Ziploc baggie, with the recipient’s name. 

Packing up the goodies is the part Mrs. Claus gets a hand from the one and only Santa Claus. At the time he was not wearing his usual wardrobe and did not want kids to see him, so he, too, went undercover for the television cameras.

The couple then takes the special packages outside to be hung in alphabetical order along a string with clothespins along a fence near a popular walking trail.

It is something the couple started doing last year, inspired by the purchase of a decorative holiday mailbox. Santa said this year they’ve received hundreds of letters compared to about a few dozen last year.

“We always enjoy Christmas. But this year, very, very special,” he said.

Hannah Robinson found her package along the fence and instantly smiled. She shook her package up and down as she said, “I like it.” After telling Santa she loved baking, Robinson found a fudge brownie baking mix in her special package.  

“I’m going to make some brownies,” she said.

Spreading a bit of cheer is just what Santa and Mrs. Claus do.  

“It’s given us so much pleasure to see everyone happy,” said Mrs. Claus.

The couple plans to continue the tradition of letter writing next year, too. In the meantime, Mr. and Mrs. Claus are ready for their biggest day of the year.

“We gotta load everything up on Santa’s sleigh because he’s got to go all over the world,” said Mrs. Claus.

Until next year, Mr. and Mrs. Claus want to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas.