That Santa Claus holding the baby didn’t always appear so authentic.
In the mid-’80s, when Bill Shattuck was just starting out in the role, he wore an inexpensive costume and a fake beard. Today, he and his beard — now more than a decade real — plays Santa up and down the northern Front Range.
That includes visits to Medical Center of the Rockies in Loveland in recent years.
His hospital visits won’t happen this year, due to COVID restrictions, but Santa Moose — as Shattuck is called — is still finding a way to spread his special Christmas magic to children throughout the area. Today we catch up with him.
How long ago did you begin your job as Santa? And why did you take the job?
I started volunteering as Santa in the mid-1980s handing out Pinewood Derby cars to Cub Scouts. At the time, I had a short beard and used an inexpensive outfit and fake beard. Until 2010, I just volunteered at parties and friends gatherings. In 2007, we moved from Southern California to Fort Collins, and I let me beard grow. In 2010, I was encouraged to apply for a Santa position at the Greeley mall. I found I really like talking to the children and parents.
How did you get the name Santa Moose?
I got the nickname Moose from Boy Scouts. I was elected to Vigil Honor in their Order of the Arrow, and that was the shortened translation of my Indian name. When we moved here I used my nickname more than my legal name.
Last year you attended a Santa school in Michigan. What does one learn at Santa school?
We attended the Charles W. Howard Santa School in Midland, Mich. It is the oldest Santa school in the nation. This particular school covered how to market yourself, what to do on interviews, how to portray yourself, how to have a background story and various stories about Santa. We’ve attended other schools on how to be a stronger Santa emotionally, how to work with disadvantaged children, and many other items. The list can go on and on including how to properly bleach your hair and/or beard. There were others about insurance, background checks and legal issues.
This time of year, what’s your weekly schedule look like?
This year due to COVID I’m doing a few online visits and a couple of outdoor photo shops. The outdoor shoots are all masked. There are no home visits or hospital visits this year. I am one of the Santas at the Polar Express at the Colorado Railroad Museum. The script was rewritten, and we are all socially distanced.
Can you describe an encounter with a child that left a lasting impression upon you?
While was Santa at a mall in San Antonio, I had a young girl who had braces on come to see me and say she was going to visit me in a week. She was excited. A week later she and her mom arrived. I found out she had more disabilities with her hands, but this young girl didn’t act like she had any issues. Her smile and excitement was invigorating. Watching her as she limped off, you see she didn’t think she had any issues. I’ve never forgotten her smile and attitude.
Bill Shattuck
Occupation: Santa Claus
Years in the area: 2007
— John Vahlenkamp
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Five Questions: Bill Shattuck has been a Northern Colorado Santa for more than a decade - Loveland Reporter-Herald
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