Those of us that have worked in an office setting are familiar with the Secret Santa tradition. It is popular in the workplace as well as in large families. The basic premise of the Secret Santa tradition is that small gifts are given anonymously in a group setting. Though the tradition is popular, the origins of it are less known.
The original "Secret Santa" is an American philanthropist named Larry Dean Steart who lived from 1938 until 2007.
Larry Dean Stewart didn't always have money; in fact the story of how he started is a true lesson in generosity. After graduating college, Larry found himself broke and living in his car in Houston, Texas. One day, he was especially hungry and decided to go into a diner even though he knew he had no way to pay for a meal. When the check came, Larry acted like he had forgotten his wallet. Meanwhile, the owner of the diner could tell what was going on, and knew Larry did not have any money. He handed Larry a twenty dollar bill saying "You must have dropped this." Larry never forgot the kindness shown to him by the owner. A year later, Larry was again unemployed. This was the second time he was fired from a job a week before Christmas. He stopped to get something to eat and noticed that the carhop was not wearing a coat in the middle of winter. Larry found out that she did not have enough money to buy one and so gave her a twenty dollar bill to pay for his two dollar meal. Later in life Larry was repaid for his kindness by a cousin who helped him find a good job in Kansas City. He went on to make millions in the cable TV and long distance phone service industry.
Larry went on perform random acts of kindness not only during the Christmas season, but year round. In 26 years he gave away a total of 1.6 millions dollars. He did this a hundred dollars at a time, and always anonymously.
Based on the original concept, there are now variations of the tradition. One of the most popular of these is the White Elephant Gift Exchange. This is also known as The Thieving Secret Santa, Yankee Swap, Devil's Santa, Dirty Santa, and the Grinch Game. The idea is that each participant will bring a gift to the party that may be suitable for any of the people in attendance. The gift is also wrapped in a way that disguises what it is. Participants draw names from a hat to determine order and then proceed to choose a gift one at a time. Once opened, they have the choice of opening another gift, keeping the gift, or stealing a previously opened gift. Some other secret Santa variations are giving gifts or a period of days, and also Casino Santa where participants can choose either gift or money.
Inspired by the story of Larry Dean Stewart's generosity, there are web sites dedicated to the organization of "Secret Santas" worldwide. These people perform random acts of kindness in their area and network to support those in need. The organization even has a creed which emphasizes the importance of anonymity. A good Secret Santa is not only anonymous, but generous as well.
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