‘They Light Up’ : Santa’s Songs Ease Anxiety of Little Ones

Children who arrive crying in fear are usually singing a different tune after a visit with Saint Nick in Canoga Park.

They leave singing a Christmas tune--in harmony with Robert Schick, the Singing Santa.

Schick, 66, is a part-time shopping center Santa Claus at Topanga Plaza who wears a standard red suit and white beard and works out of a “North Pole” covered with plastic snow.

Instead of ho-hum ho-ho-ho’s for the children lined up to whisper Christmas wishes in his whisker-blanketed ear, Schick belts out ragtime versions of songs like “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.”

The kids break into grins. Their parents break into applause.

‘It Helps the Kids’

“It’s great,” Lydia Lewis said as she watched her 1 1/2-year-old son, David, bounce happily on Schick’s knee to the tune of “Santa Claus is Coming to Town.”

“It helps the kids. They’re familiar with singing and with the words to Christmas songs. It’s a great idea,” Lewis said.

Teri Feld of Reseda lingered to listen after her son Christopher, 3, finished his visit.

“He’s a great Santa. He’s the best Santa I’ve ever seen, the very best. My uncle has played Santa too. But this is the best,” Feld said, clapping as Schick finished a song.

Penny Riffel, assistant supervisor of a crew of photographers who snap pictures of children and Santa for parents to buy, said Schick is one of six Santas working at the booth. He’s the only singer in the bearded bunch, though.

‘Mothers Liked It’

“At first we were kind of embarrassed over his singing,” Riffel said. “But the mothers liked it. And now we like it too.”

Cinde Christopherson, another picture-booth supervisor, said older children invariably sing along with Schick, and younger ones just listen. “If they’re afraid, it stops their crying instantly,” Christopherson said.

Schick said that’s his intent.

“They open up and talk a lot more after I sing,” he said. “They just light up when they hear a familiar song. In some cases, I think it brings an extra child or two to Santa.”

Schick is a retired sales promoter from Florida who is visiting his daughter in Canoga Park for the holidays. He said he took the $5-an-hour Santa job to give him something to do during his monthlong stay.

“I like to sing, and I got the idea it would work out if Santa sang Christmas songs. But I would never sing anything else, a love ballad or anything. I would never degrade Santa Claus,” he said.

Twins Broke Into Run

Schick has discovered that a singing Santa is not music to everyone’s ear, however.

Two-year-old twins Patrick and Christopher Curoe broke into a run when Santa broke into “White Christmas” as they stood in line to meet him.

“They’re just a little shy,” said their mother, Joanne Curoe of Canoga Park. “We tried for a visit with Santa yesterday too.”

Six-year-old Jenny Evans of Woodland Hills said Santa’s singing was OK--but not the best she has heard. “My favorite singer is my daddy,” Jenny said.

Her mother, Shelley Evans, explained that Robert Evans is a professional singer touring in the East with a Christian folk singing group.

William Goeppinger of Canoga Park jokingly howled like a dog as Schick sang “Rudolph.”

“Oh, he’s not that bad,” said his wife, Verne, shushing him. “Look at the calm look on that child’s face--he’s not totally afraid of Santa.

“A kid doesn’t know whether it’s good singing or not.”