Lisa and Craig Logan enjoy being Santa’s and Mrs. Claus’s helpers each year and bringing joy to both children and staff at Mercy Springfield. Lisa says her husband was the perfect candidate for the role when they decided to take on this effort last year.
"He grayed very early and we've always joked, 'you should be Santa someday,' you know? she said. "And we take disabled terminally ill kids hunting on our property, so we have a love for kids, and this kind of came up, as an employee here as part of a committee where we try to increase morale for the hospital, and so Santa making the rounds and stuff."
Lisa recently retired after more than four decades working as a nurse in neonatal intensive care. Craig has difficulty walking since his knees give him trouble, and he has neuropathy in his feet, but that hasn’t stopped him from continuing to work as Santa’s helper. He simply turned his wheelchair into a sleigh.
"She got on Pinterest, and she found this little cardboard sled and said, 'let's do this,' " he said, "and I said, 'well, we can't do it out of cardboard,' so me being the builder and a carpenter, I slapped this together, and here we go."
The spend several days visiting children who are in the hospital at Christmas and spread cheer among staff, dropping off candy as they go.
There are also plenty of pictures — some staff members even sit on Santa’s lap.
Lisa’s a photographer, and she brings in backdrops so the pictures she presents to families don’t have a sterile hospital feel.
"It's got garland and greenery, and it looks like you're in a Christmas setting, and we include the parents in that, and all the babies get hats and get dressed up," she said, "and they are just so thrilled. They just can't wait for that moment, you know, the moms and dads stick around, and you know, Santa's here. We've had other siblings in there, and we have got some beautiful memories of that."
Her husband said the visits are about making memories for the family "because they're in a situation over Christmas it's kind of rough, so if we can bring a little cheer to that and give those kids a moment of laughter and smile, maybe it'll get them through the next day, that's what it's for."
They take their roles seriously, dressing as Santa and Mrs. Claus for holiday parties and even while running errands in their town.
"We drove around town — we live in Rogersville — and went to our bank and our vet and our groomer's, which led us to the senior center and a day care and all kinds of places," said Lisa, "just popped in to say, 'Merry Christmas,' you know, and make them smile, no particular reason. They didn't expect us but brought smiles to everybody's faces."
They want to keep the Christmas magic alive for folks as long as they can, she said.
