Local Santa Spreads Cheer(posted Oct 27) "Christmas, it is the best season of all," said Pat Panyard of Speedway. Panyard should know since he has transformed himself into Santa for the last six years to bring smiles to children's faces. What inspired Panyard to impersonate Santa started from his daughters' remark that he looked like Santa. From there, the dream unfolded. Panyard enjoys giving the gift of memories of Santa to young and old. To this day, Panyard still recalls the Santa that he saw as a little boy. His first image of Santa comes from the Wolf and Desshaur Store in Ft. Wayne. He said that Santa will always be Santa to him as well as remembering the department store's window display and the downtown Christmas Tree. "The thrill is seeing the kids faces," he said as to why he continues to play Santa.' He described the stunned look on the faces of the children when he asks about sibling fights they've had during the year, using information furnished by parents for his naughty or nice list. Panyard is not a one man band in this Santa gig. He quickly enlisted daughters as elves. He said he was not not sure what to name them, so he gave them a numbers, Two, Four and Seven. Panyard's preparation starts long before December 1. In addition to letting his curly beard and hair grow, Panyard gets his first inkling that Christmas is coming by July. "Every time about July my belly starts growing," he quipped. After Thanksgiving, Panyard will bleach his hair, brow and beard for the holiday events. He may have to do a few touch ups now and then to hold the color through the season, but one of his thrills during the season is to go grocery shopping out of costume to test his credibility with his beard, hair and signature eye wink. Panyard knows he is doing his job right when turns the nonbelievers into believers. He knows he is good to go when he can hear the them whisper to their parents "that was Santa." Playing Santa is no easy task once kids begin to engage him into a conversation. He has to stay quick on his toes to handle the kids that like to drill Santa with hundreds of questions. He described the event as non stop questioning that often results in the children tugging at his beard to prove that he is Santa. Panyard had some explaining to do one year when he locked his keys in the car where he was to play Santa. Scrambling to explain why he was not in a sleigh, he told the children that he had to park the sleigh and reindeer in Chicago because that was the last place of significant snowfall for them. From there, Santa had to rent a car to finish his deliveries. He said the lady knocking on the door was the car rental agency bringing Santa another set of keys. Santa does not hesitate to defer to his elves for answers if he continues to get pounded with questions that he can't answer. He admits that sometimes it is difficult to think in an impromptu setting. This year, Santa can dodge some questions as he plans to take children caroling on Christmas day this year in the neighborhoods in Avon where he first played Santa six years ago. Like Santa, Panyard has a generous heart. Panyard often donates his time as Santa for charity causes. One event is for the Speedway High School Key Club bake good fund raiser for Jessie Brady Scholarship. The event is hosted by Jennifer Lyttie of Affaire All Occasion Catering at 4900 W. 16th Street. He stands on the balcony waving to the passers-by to come to the charity event. Playing Santa has also come with a bit of stardom. Panyard was one of many Santas recruited to dance with the Colts Cheerleaders at halftime. He said the opportunity happened about four or five years ago when his daughter was taking dance lessons from a teacher who also was the cheerleaders' choreographer. "It was a lot fun, but it was really hot dancing in the Santa suit," he said. Panyard has become Santa even at the unexpected times. He noted one year when he went to his wife's office Christmas party, they started talking about Santa. It was not long that he found himself heading home to change into his costume to complete the Christmas party with a guest appearance of Santa. Panyard admitted that he has a critical eye of judging of what he thinks his an acceptable Santa. One of Panyard's pet peeves is seeing a skinny Santa. He said last year he thought about quitting as Santa until he went to a fund raiser. He was mortified for the children to see a skinny Santa. "Something was not right about children seeing a skinny Santa," he said, adding that he told the organizers that he would be their Santa the following year. Panyard confessed that he dieted one year. "I was even doing really well and then all of the sudden it became July. No matter what, my belly is going to be here," he thought. |
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