LAPLACE — To keep things jolly, one local man makes appearances all over the River Parishes free of charge just to make children smile.

Russ Wise said he started dressing as Santa Claus approximately 10 years ago.

“I went to the Sheriff’s public relations office for something, I forget what it was,” he said. “Well, the man who was the P.R. officer for the Sheriff looked at me and said ‘Oh look it’s Santa Claus’ and I said, ‘Yeah, ho ho ho.’ Then he said, ‘No, you don’t understand. We have this red suit and we need someone to wear it.’ So I agreed to do it, and I think I visited three places as Santa Claus that year and had so much fun that the next year I went out and bought a Santa Claus suit. Being on the School Board, I asked the principals if they needed a Santa.”

Wise now has seven different Santa Claus costumes.

From the beginning of December through Christmas Eve, Wise makes approximately 30 appearances at schools, animal shelters, the War Veterans Home, hospitals and more.  People start contacting him in August to ask him to make appearances, which is also around the time he starts growing out his beard.

Wise keeps his beard year round but lets it grow out in August to make it fuller, only trimming it to keep it neat.

Wise will be making an appearance for Riverside Academy’s’ Cookies with Santa fundraiser this month for the second year in a row.

“He comes in and talks with the kids and he sits in a chair and asks them what they want for Christmas,” Jessica Jeffers said. “It’s part of a fundraiser that we do for Marching Pride.”

Jeffers is the band booster fundraiser chair and thinks having Santa at the fundraiser makes a difference.

“He talks with the kids and plays around with them a bit,” she said. “The children’s eyes light up when they see him. They get excited. They all want to run up to him and give him hugs.”

That’s the main reason Wise dresses as Santa, to make children happy. Wise said his love of children is something he got from his father.

“I love little kids,” he said. “The best thing is the interaction with the kids. They kiss me, tug my beard and do all kinds of things. It’s just delightful.”

Wise has learned from his years as Santa to never promise a child something specific. He said he tells the children Santa will try his best. He also brings an extra Santa suit to each event because “little people and animals sometimes make a mess.”

Performing as Santa at animal shelters means Wise has taken photos with a number of pets over the years.

“I’ve held weasels, snakes, squirrels and a turtle,” Wise said. “Normally, it’s just dogs and cats, but every once in while you get something unusual.”

This will be Wise’s third year making an appearance at the St. Charles Animal Shelter.

“He will be here (Saturday),” Jackie Boudreaux said. “We put out advertising all over the Parish telling people to come have their pets take photos with Santa. This year we are having pets and families. It’s for people that want to put their kids in or themselves in with their pets. It’s $15 for each picture and the money is used for the adoption program that we run.”

Boudreaux is president of St. Charles Humane Society.

“Mr. Wise comes fully dressed. He is just a fantastic person,” she said. “He does it at no cost to us; he volunteers his time to be Santa for us. We are having him back for the third year in a row because he is so well liked.”

By Raquel Derganz Baker