COURTESY OF ECKERT'S FARMS
For Santa safety, a plastic bubble makes things just right.
For a second year, Eckert's Farms in Bellville, Illinois is rolling out a Santa-sized globe for its annual meet-and-greet events. Encasing the jolly Christmas icon in plastic allows kids to interact with him safely — while not sharing anything more infectious than holiday cheer.
Each year, the farm's Bellville location (951 South Green Mount Road, Belleville, 618-233-0513) hosts a series of Santa-involved events. Amanda Morgan, marketing director at Ecker's, explains that the globe is a compromise arrived at during the last first holiday season amid COVID.
"We were hopeful that we would get away from that this year," Morgan said, and added, "but that was not the case."
Last year, Morgan said the new protections didn't appear to damper the usual excitement for the Breakfast With Santa events, which include storytime, cookie decoration and (of course) a breakfast with Santa followed by telling him Christmas wishes. The breakfast events have been adapted to keep social distances in place, but the bubble allows the kids to spend some time talking to Santa before it's time for a photo.
For reservations and ticket information for Santa photo opportunities and Breakfast With Santa, visit the event pages on Eckert's website at eckerts.com. Breakfast with Santa runs for two days, on December 18 and 19. Photos with Santa are available weekdays through December 23.
Follow Danny Wicentowski on Twitter at @D_Towski. E-mail the author at [email protected]
