How many of you recognize the name Virginia O’Hanlon or Francis P. Church? These two people connected in a way that has left a lasting memory for over one hundred and eleven years. In 1897 a little girl who at that time was 8 years old went to her father after coming home from school questioning whether there was a Santa Claus. As Virginia recalled the events some 36 years later this is what she said:

"“Quite naturally I believed in Santa Claus, for he had never disappointed me. But when less fortunate little boys and girls said there wasn’t any Santa Claus, I was filled with doubts. I asked my father, and he was a little evasive on the subject. “It was a habit in our family that whenever any doubts came up as to how to pronounce a word or some question of historical fact was in doubt, we wrote to the Question and Answer column in The Sun. Father would always say, ‘If you see it in the The Sun, it’s so,’ and that settled the matter. “ ‘Well, I’m just going to write The Sun and find out the real truth,’ I said to father. “He said, ‘Go ahead, Virginia. I’m sure The Sun will give you the right answer, as it always does.’ ” And so Virginia sat down and wrote her parents’ favorite newspaper." - BeeBO

The letter landed on the desk of Francis Pharcellus church, a veteran writer at the Sun, a man by all accounts was sardonic and whose personal motto was " Endeavor to clear your mind of can'ts" When he was first handed this letter, he apparently bristled at even doing this, but when it came to controversial letters especially those dealing with theology, he was the man that got the job done. He wrote his reply to Virginia under the deadline and in fewer than 500 words.

As many of you now realize, I am talking about the Famous Editorial " Yes, Virginia, There is a Santa Claus" This one editorial has been translated into some 20 languages, TV shows and even set to music. It is the ultimate feel good article that reaches not only children, but maybe more importantly adults with its universal appeal. In a time where we are so worried about being politically correct, in a time where we see so many problems faced by so many this one editorial is even more important now than it was then. It is my pleasure to share with you:

Yes, Virginia, There is a Santa

 Dear Editor— I am 8 years old. Some of my little friends say there is no Santa Claus. Papa says, “If you see it in The Sun, it’s so.” Please tell me the truth, is there a Santa Claus?

signed, Virginia O’Hanlon Virginia,

Dear Virginia:

 Your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Virginia, whether they be men’s or children’s, are little. In this great universe of ours, man is a mere insect, an ant, in his intellect as compared with the boundless world about him, as measured by the intelligence capable of grasping the whole of truth and knowledge. Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus! It would be as dreary as if there were no Virginias. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished. Not believe in Santa Claus! You might as well not believe in fairies. You might get your papa to hire men to watch in all the chimneys on Christmas eve to catch Santa Claus, but even if you did not see Santa Claus coming down, what would that prove? Nobody sees Santa Claus, but that is no sign that there is no Santa Claus. The most real things in the world are those that neither children nor men can see. Did you ever see fairies dancing on the lawn? Of course not, but that’s no proof that they are not there. Nobody can conceive or imagine all the wonders there are unseen and unseeable in the world. You tear apart the baby’s rattle and see what makes the noise inside, but there is a veil covering the unseen world which not the strongest man, nor even the united strength of all the strongest men that ever lived could tear apart. Only faith, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain and view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. Is it all real? Ah, Virginia, in all this world there is nothing else real and abiding. No Santa Claus! Thank God! he lives and lives forever. A thousand years from now, Virginia, nay 10 times 10,000 years from now, he will continue to make glad the heart of childhood.

I wish every Hubber a Very Merry Christmas and May Your New Year bring You health and prosperity.

My Best Regards to Each and Every One of You.