Santa Rob embodies the spirit of Old Saint Nick

“Though I’ve grown old, the bell still rings for me, as it does for all those who truly believe.”

As the last line of “The Polar Express” finished on Dec. 6 in the old Strand Theatre, a jolly “Ho ho ho!” rang through the room as Santa himself came to visit the boys and girls. Screaming ensued as children caught a glimpse of Santa and Mrs. Claus making their way down the aisle, stopping to say hello and give hugs.

This moment of magic and wonder is why Rob Welch of Winterset puts on the Santa suit, dedicating much of his holiday season to the families of Southwest Iowa.

Though he first played Santa in the late ‘80s, early 90s, he started a full-time gig as Santa Iowa Rob four years ago. Now he’s famous for his kindness and his resemblance to Old Saint Nick.

Welch said his snowy white beard was how it all got started. “People would say, ‘hey, you kind of look like Santa. Will you come play Santa?’ I thought, sure, I’ll do that.”

Every season starts with the Festival of Lights at the end of November in Winterset where the lighted parade finishes with Santa lighting up the Christmas tree.

From there, it’s go, go, go for the happy couple as they work to bring Christmas magic to as many boys and girls as possible.

“In total, we did 86 events,” Welch said. “From Thanksgiving to the Saturday after Christmas, I work every day. Seven days a week, we do Santa. I work all day and then we have a gig or a meeting that night. On weekends, by the time we leave the house, it would be 7 a.m. to 9 or 10 at night.”

Welch’s events vary from public events like the one at Merry Marketplace in Creston to in-home visits and even some special experiences at hospitals and care facilities.

He couldn’t do it without his wife, Barb, playing Mrs. Claus and his daughter Jaden managing his social media and his schedule.

Standing out

Across the United States, thousands dress up as Santa each year, but Welch finds a way to stand out.

“You really have to enjoy doing it,” he said. “I think that’s why we stand out. I think that’s what makes me different from maybe a mall Santa. I think it’s a lot more fun when you can engage with them on a smaller level. You have to like doing it because it’s a lot of work.”

His passion is evident as he talks with each kid who comes through the line. One boy wears a Minnesota Vikings shirt. Santa asks him about star receiver Justin Jefferson, getting up and hitting the “griddy,” a dance move Jefferson does after scoring a touchdown. The boy’s face lights up.

Santa knows all the newest trends. He laughs as he says “six seven,” a joke enjoyed by the kids. They wonder how Santa knows it.

Small children ask for Legos or Barbies. “We make a lot of Legos at the North Pole,” Santa replies.

As Santa, Welch learns all about what the trending toys are each year. “When enough people sit on your lap and tell you what they want for Christmas, you figure out what the hot items are, especially for the age groups,” he said.

While some things like Squishmallows, Barbies and monster trucks are always popular, Santa had some new additions this year.

“The thing that surprised me this year were 3D printers,” Welch said. One kid even asked for a live unicorn, but Santa has a rule when it comes to live animals, mythical or otherwise.

“I have a hard rule,” he said. “Santa does not deliver animals or babies. If you get a baby or an animal, that comes from mom or dad, not Santa. We don’t make those at the North Pole.”

Some children squeal with delight as they see Santa while others are nervous or even afraid.

“Some of them hang back by mom’s leg. Some of them are so excited, they are telling you what you want on their way to your lap, so that’s fun,” Welch said. “You get both kinds. It’s kind of interesting to see which way it’s going to go.”

For some kids, the fear doesn’t last long.

“Two kids were just afraid of me the one year, wouldn’t get near me. The next year, they came up and ran right into my lap,” he recalled. “I think there’s sort of a transition period where they warm up to it.”

Then there are some kids who question if Santa is real. “They go to school and they have friends that say ‘Santa doesn’t exist, that’s just made up by your parents,’” Welch explained. “And then you’ve got the ones who don’t want to believe, but the parents, the moms especially, want one more year. It’s a big transition when a kid doesn’t believe in Santa anymore.”

For those kids, Welch has a special message.

“You want to keep that magic but you don’t want to be deceiving,” he said. “To those kids I say what my mom told me when I was a kid at that same age. ‘As long as there is someone that loves you, there will always be a Santa at Christmas. That’s part of the Christmas magic.’”

After each child has had their photo and shared their wishes with Santa, Mrs. Claus hands Welch a magnet. He takes the child’s hand and wraps it around the magnet. On the count of three, they check to see if the magnet says the nice list or the naughty list.

The children smile as the magnet reads, “you are on Santa’s nice list.” Though he’s done it thousands of times throughout the season, Welch’s face lights up with surprise every time. “You’re on Santa’s nice list,” he proclaims. “Ho, Ho, Ho!”

Volunteer work

“My company allows me 24 hours of volunteer service a year,” Welch explained. “My daughter is a NICU nurse at Mercy, so this is our third or fourth year going to Mercy NICU.”

The moment is special for Welch as he travels from room to room, speaking with the parents and taking pictures with the babies. But it’s even more special for the parents.

“While you’re here in the NICU, you’re on a medical routine, so you have the monitors, the nurses coming in, the care time,” new mom Annabell Crall said. “I felt like it gave us a quick break from that, and we just got to celebrate the season and our boys.”

The Cralls have been in the Mercy NICU since before Thanksgiving as Crall was admitted for her water breaking before the birth of her twin boys on Nov. 29.

Though she said it was special to have the boys with them during Christmas, it was also difficult. Welch brought some light into their days.

“He was so wonderful, and he was so kind,” she said. “They had Mrs. Claus there too. They gave us these little magnets that said you’re on the nice list for the boys. I’m doing a scrapbook for them, and this is just something to add to it.”

In addition to Welch’s kindness, Crall was impressed with his depiction of the classic Christmas figure.

“He’s the best-looking Santa I’ve ever seen,” she said.

Some NICU families seek out Santa Rob in future years.

“Two years ago, there was a couple that was in the NICU,” Welch said. “The following year, they looked us up, showed up at one of our public events and told us the story about how we were there at the NICU with them. She said, ‘you’re our Santa now.’ So now we go into their home. It’s not just them, we have multiple families.”

Welch leaves a lasting impression as Santa.

“That is a Santa you’d want to get your kids’ picture with, and he was very kind,” Crall added. “I know he does a lot of outings. It would be a full-circle moment for us, after being in the NICU with him, to see him out and about.”

Home visits

One of Welch’s favorites is to be invited into a home to visit the children. This allows an even more intimate experience as the kids get more time to talk to Santa.

A form given to the parents ahead of time allows Welch to memorize names and little facts about the kids, including the name of their Elf on a Shelf.

“Elves are always mischievous, getting into trouble,” Welch said. “So I hear about all the things the elves have done, like they took all the boys’ underwear and hung them on the tree. Or they pooped on something, something silly like that.”

He tells the kids that their elf has been reporting back to Santa. Welch congratulates them on their recent successes and sometimes tells them they need to have their listening ears on better.

One thing stays the same. He always reads “Twas the Night Before Christmas.”

“You have to experience that,” Welch said. “Not only the kids, but the adults too, the room will go quiet.” Welch has the story memorized so he can best deliver the performance.

They all come together to say the last line, “Happy Christmas to all, and to all, a good night!”