Santa visited Gloucester recently to have his picture taken with members of the community before making his final preparations for his busiest day of the year.
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One local took advantage of the opportunity for the chance to get her very first photo with Santa after waiting 40 years.
Anne Fenning said that her mother couldn’t find a photo of her as a child with Santa; there were ones of her sister and brother, but none of her.
“Mum reckons I must have played up too much and never got my photo taken,” Anne laughed.
She was among the 50 bookings made for people to capture a 2016 Christmas memory with the man in red.
Ernie and Sharee Abeysekera, owners of Helloworld Gloucester, organised the event which helps raise funds for local charities.
Ernie said families were able to get in to see Santa with a maximum 15 minutes wait and were able to slotted even without a booking, a far cry from the three hours, he was told, some families had to wait in line for Santa photos at Charlestown shopping centre.
“We had several pets, mainly dogs, feature in the family photos,” he said.
There was even a request for a horse but they were unable to manage that one. However, they are talking about having photo sessions in Gloucester Park next year for pet photos with Santa. “Santa In Gloucester can do anything,” Ernie explained.
The oldest person they photographed was an 80 year-old grandmother who was sending her photos to her grandchildren, while the youngest was a five week old baby.
“We encourage the grandparents to have a photo and send them to their grandchildren. We also encourage businesses to have a photo with their staff,” Ernie said.
Even though the final figures aren’t in yet, they have so far distributed $1800 to local charities.
Santa in Gloucester has run every year since 2012, with the exception of last year. Bookings were the highest in inaugural year at 110, before dropping off down to 22 in 2014. Sponsors were IGA Gloucester, National Australia Bank (NAB), Shojon, Naturalights Photography, Sharon Benson Photography, and Helloworld Gloucester.
Anne Keen
Anne has been a journalist with the ACM (Australia Community Media) since 2016. She primarily works at the Gloucester Advocate but also contributes to the Manning River Times.
Anne has been a journalist with the ACM (Australia Community Media) since 2016. She primarily works at the Gloucester Advocate but also contributes to the Manning River Times.
