Santa, also known as Walter Chester, was spotted at a bus stop in P.A. Wednesday afternoon. (Teena Monteleone/paNOW Staff)

By Teena Monteleone

Santa on the Street

Santa spotted in Prince Albert on Christmas Eve Eve

Dec 23, 2020 | 5:00 PM

Nobody expected to see Santa standing at the corner of 15^th Street and Sixth Avenue on a Wednesday afternoon in Prince Albert, but there he was, waving to cars and handing out candy canes from a safe social distance to passersby as he waited at the bus stop for public transit.

“I was doing a practice run of my Christmas deliveries for tomorrow night and my sleigh happened to break down right over P.A. So, right now, it’s being repaired so I thought I’d see the city as I wait,” Santa said.

Santa assured paNOW everything would be ready to go by Christmas Eve.

“The elves have their masks on and Mrs. Claus is excited to get rid of me for the night,” he said.

Santa, also known in this case as Walter Chester, decided to spend his afternoon spreading Christmas cheer just to ‘do something good.’

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“It’s such a depressing Christmas this year with COVID, so I figured why not? I have my Santa suit and I am gonna go out and do something good and just make everybody happy,” he said.

A simple wave from the Jolly Old Elf himself appeared to do just that, as a steady stream of honks from drivers and smiles from passengers were met with a hearty “Ho, Ho Ho, Merry Christmas!”

“It’s wonderful and awesome to see. It just shows the holiday spirit in Saskatchewan. Everyone is caring and loving,” said Chester…I mean Santa.

As he handed out his last candy cane and packed up his sack, Santa encouraged everyone to stay safe this Christmas and love one another from afar.

“Even though you can’t see them, they still love you and miss you and they know you love and miss them. So, stay positive. We’ll get back to normal soon,” he said.

And with a twinkle in his eye, Santa gave a nod and one last wave goodbye, leaving this reporter with an opportunity to write about something good today.

—

Teena.monteleone@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @MonteleoneTeena