We hate to stoke interstate rivalry, but seriously, Texas and Florida, you get all up in our California faces for saying “Happy Holidays” instead of “Merry Christmas,” and this is the best you can do?
Sforza’s 2025 Operation Santa offerings
Readers may know we’ve long been charmed by Operation Santa, wherein the U.S. Postal Service recruits everyday elves like ourselves to spread holiday cheer.
Every year, little kids — and, heart-wrenchingly, some older sorts who are struggling and can’t quite make holiday magic on their own — write letters to Santa detailing their wishes, desires and struggles. And, every year, stand-in Santas, such as yours truly, choose a letter to “adopt” and do our best to fulfill some of the material-type wishes therein.
The goodies zip off via USPS, in boxes that arrive at strangers’ homes bearing a “North Pole” stamp. We love imagining the excitement as folks open those boxes! It seems to be everything that the holidays are about, no?
Anyway, we got to wondering. Where do these Santa’s helpers come from, exactly? And where do the magic boxes go?
We asked USPS for data on same, and USPS furnished it with surprising swiftness.
Now — with the full understanding that California is the most populous state in the nation with some 39.5 million people — we can tell you that more than 5,900 Californians adopted letters through Operation Santa!
California cities with the most Stand-in-Santas (USPS data)
Texas — population 31 million — had way less than half as many Santas, at about 2,600.
Florida — population 21 million — had slightly more Santas than Texas, at about 2,660. Which makes it not as generous as California but way more generous than Texas.
Still, most of the letters sent go unanswered. Almost 276,000 letters were received last year; only 34,000 were adopted.
That’s a big leap from 2020, when 189,000 letters were received. Which was a tremendous leap from 2019, when only 62,000 letters were received.
The economy doesn’t appear to be improving for everyone.
California giving
In the Golden State, the cities with the most Stand-in-Santas were, as you’d expect, the cities with the most people. Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Sacramento, San Jose and Oakland topped the heap.
Screenshot of Operation Santa Letter (USPS)
Smaller cities like Glendale, Long Beach, Riverside, Anaheim, Bakersfield, Pasadena, Santa Ana, Huntington Beach and Fullerton may or may not have punched above their weight.
In Orange County, there were 548 Stand-in-Santas, stretching from Brea and Yorba Linda all the way down to San Clemente and Dana Point. This is heartening, as a postal clerk told us we were the only ones to send an Operation Santa box from our local post office (surprising in itself because we mailed it two days after the suggested cut-off date; creatures of deadlines, we are). Turns out that five other families from my town did Santa a good turn as well.
(Around here, the tree is still up and the wreath still adorns the front door. Judge not lest ye be judged!)
Decorations at the post office during Operation Santa in Los Angeles, California, on Tuesday, December 5, 2017. Operation Santa is the USPS’ program to answer letters written to Santa by needy kids.
(Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
“Dear Santa, My name is Jemma and I’m 10 years old,” said one letter, proceeding to run down a wish list. Then: “Please get my mom something for Christmas as well, she works so hard to take care of me, the house and all of our pets and she doesn’t ask for anything for herself. She loves anything Star Wars and elephants.”
Where do the gifts go?
It’s hard not to see this data as a map of where folks are having the hardest times.
The city that received the most Operation Santa packages in California was Sacramento, with 154, followed by the much, much larger Los Angeles, with 122; San Diego, 117; Bakersfield, 109; Panorama City, 107; Stockton, 93; Chula Vista, 70; Fresno, 63; Modesto, 61; Long Beach, 48; San Bernardino, 45; and San Jose, 43.
In O.C., there was want where you might expect it, but also where you might not.
Orange County cities and their Stand-in-Santas (USPS data)
Anaheim families received gifts from 32 Stand-in-Santas; Irvine, from 31; Santa Ana, 26; Garden Grove, 19; La Habra, 12; Fullerton and Orange, 10 each; Costa Mesa and Fountain Valley, 9 each; Huntington Beach and Westminster, 7 each; Yorba Linda, 5; La Palma and Placentia, 3; Buena Park, San Clemente and Mission Viejo, 2; Laguna Beach, Newport Beach, Rancho Santa Margarita, Seal Beach and Tustin, 1 each.
Irvine, more packages than Santa Ana? Starving students maybe?
“Dear Santa, I hope you are well,” began another letter.
“My name is Alicia I am 7 years old I’ve been a good girl this year. Some of the nice things I did were giving out food to the homeless and donating most of my clothes to the kids in the hotels.” (Somebody, get this kid a Barbie Mini-Activity Craft Kit, stat!)
Anyway, Stand-in-Santas, we salute you and thank you for going out of your way to brighten someone else’s day. Even those from Texas and Florida!
Wouldn’t it be swell if rivalries did break out — between states, between cities — to see who could fulfill more wishes?
We dare you! We triple-dog dare you!