Christmas cheer: Santa's sending greetings and encouragement to kids stuck at home

To the youngest among us in the Triangle, Jd Thomas might be best known as Santa. For several years, Thomas has stepped in for Santa during the annual Amtrak Santa Train, greeting families on the annual ride between Raleigh and Greensboro. He sits with kids at corporate Christmas events across the Triangle. And, last Christmas, he rode with families during the popular Great Raleigh Trolley Santa Express.

The Santa gigs usually have dried up by now. But, thanks to the pandemic, this is an unusual year. And in the last week, Thomas has pulled out his plush red Santa suit again to give kids who are stuck at home, missing school, friends and activities, a little bright spot in their day.

"I deliver a personalized message of inspiration and hope to the children during these crazy times," he says.

Thomas also is a bartender at Stir Raleigh, and the idea for the Santa videos started after he mentioned doing them during the live bartending videos he was sharing on his Facebook page.

"I started talking about doing it, and all these hearts started lighting up," he says. "So I said, 'Maybe this could be an idea that I could do. .. Let's try it out.'"

Word quickly spread, and Thomas has filmed greetings for families as far away as California. To prepare, he asks the parents for the child's name, age, details about any pets, what they got for Christmas last year, what they call their parents and any other details that parents want to share. "Some ask me to give them a word of encouragement about cleaning up or brushing their teeth," Thomas says.

Then, as the sun sets and with his wife behind the camera, Thomas films the videos in front of the outdoor fireplace at his Wendell home. He's filmed greetings for all ages — even a 19-year-old who is missing time away from college.

"He's over being home," Thomas says the teen's mother told him. "Just trying to give him words of encouragement."

While he's thrilled to spread some Santa cheer, the videos also have turned into an important side business for Thomas and his family. Because of the pandemic, Thomas is not earning money as a bartender. His wife is on unemployment. He's charging $20 for the personalized video messages, and he's game to consider other opportunities, including joining in on corporate video conference calls.

"Any funds I receive from this will go to feed my family," he says.

Thomas' main message in his videos is simple.

"I just let them know that I'm at the North Pole, the elves are working around the clock making toys and everybody is fine where I'm at, and I can't wait to see them," he says.