Santa has always been the bringer of gifts to children.
The tradition is something shared by nearly all children. But for some, the ritual of visiting Santa and telling him what you want for Christmas, doesn’t always happen.
For one particular Santa, his own inability as a child to talk to St. Nick, guided him to his current path.
Growing up, Charles Graves said “never had the opportunity to tell Santa what I wanted for Christmas.”
Graves, 53, is deaf. His family, he said, never learned sign language to communicate with their son, and his visits with Santa always ended in disappointment for the young child.
“My Christmas memories consist of watching my siblings chat with Santa Claus while all I got was a thumbs up and a pat on the back,” he said. “That reality is true for children all over the world.”
Graves as Santa uses sign language to communicate with a deaf child in National Harbor, Maryland. Photo by NBC News
So Graves, and his wife, Kari, who is also deaf, set out to change that. The couple travels across the United States as Santa and Mrs. Claus, determined to bring holiday cheer to deaf children by using American Sign Language to communicate.
Each child deserves to see a Santa Claus that they can understand and relate to,” Graves said.
“Children look at me now and they’re like, wow, you know, there’s a connection there with the deaf culture. And I can always connect with the hearing kids as well,” he said.
Graves, who lives in Texas and teaches at a school for deaf children. During the winter season, however, he suits up and heads to dozens of locations where he meets with deaf children.
For Kevon Woodard, a young boy in the Washington D.C. area, meeting a deaf Santa was a first. He got a chance to visit with Graves’ Santa at the Gaylord National Resort.
“I asked Santa Claus if I could get a dirt bike and I want a black one,” he said. “And Santa Claus said that I had to be a good boy. And hopefully I get my wish.”
For Graves, each meeting with a child is meaningful, but it’s the look on the parents’ faces that makes the moment even more special.
“When I see the joy on parents’ faces surpass the awe in the children’s eyes,” he said.
I know we’re etching a core memory.”
Genie Gertz, a parent at the event, said watching the children get a chance to talk to Sant for the first time was amazing.
Santa Charles with Keivonn Woodard and his mother April Jackson-Woodard. Photo by Anthony Mowl
“Because there are so many Santa Clauses out there,” she said. “And kids are loving the experience, but deaf children don’t have that. So to be able to connect is really important and amazing.”
April Jackson Woodard, Kevon’s mom, agreed, adding that just seeing her son sit with Santa and talk about what he wanted for Christmas had been “beautiful.”
“This is exactly what it’s supposed to be. To see him laugh and make those expressions with Santa Claus was the best,” she said.
Watch below to see how Graves uses sign language to make Christmas extra special for these amazing children.
