Two decades of Operation Santa at Oak Lawn Community High School have turned a simple holiday tradition into a powerful lesson in generosity, teamwork and community care.
Students gathered Wednesday, Dec. 17, for a wrap party celebrating the culmination of this year’s Operation Santa Claus program, an annual effort that provides household items and holiday gifts to families connected to the school who need extra support during the season.
Led by Ellen Kruger, a math teacher at OLCHS, the program mirrors the Angel Tree concept familiar in malls and churches. Families with at least one student enrolled at the school are identified by the student services department based on demonstrated need. From there, the school community steps in.
“In our cafeteria, candy canes hang on wishing trees for one week, each with a wish tag identifying a person, their age and a want or need,” Kruger said. “Students and staff choose a candy cane, purchase the gift and return it unwrapped. Then we wrap everything and make sure it gets to the right families.”
Operation Santa has been a fixture at OLCHS for 20 years, a milestone that reflects both sustained need and sustained commitment. Kruger, who lives in Naperville, said the program is deeply personal.
“Growing up, my family always ‘adopted’ another family through our local family services department in Yorktown, Virginia,” she said. “Helping shop for items and delivering them made a huge impact on me. When I started working at OLCHS, I adapted a similar program I had been involved with in college to work in a high school environment.”
No single person could meet the needs of so many families alone, Kruger said, but the collective effort makes it possible.
“This year we’re helping 14 families and 40 individuals,” she said. “When students and staff combine their time and resources, we’re able to make a real difference.”
Students from all grade levels, freshmen through seniors, participate, whether by serving on the Operation Santa committee or by purchasing gifts. Committee members began their work before Thanksgiving, writing wish tags, preparing spare change boxes, supervising the cafeteria trees during lunch periods and assisting donors in selecting tags. In recent weeks, they have spent hours inventorying and sorting gifts by family and by individual to ensure accuracy.
Seventeen-year-old Evangelina Angulo, of Oak Lawn, said the best part of the program is seeing the generosity of her peers. “My favorite part of Operation Santa Claus is seeing the overwhelming support and enthusiasm from the student body every year,” she said.
Sixteen-year-old Alexander Franco, also from Oak Lawn, said he enjoys the hands-on aspect of the program. “What I enjoy most about Operation Santa Claus is helping put the presents together and wrapping them. It makes me feel happy and delightful because I know that we are going to make kids joyful and will have a great Christmas,” he said.
Each year, the program collects an estimated 200 gifts. Since its inception, Operation Santa at OLCHS has provided approximately 5,200 gifts to Oak Lawn residents and school families and distributed more than $29,500 in gift cards. This year’s contributions are expected to push that total past $30,000.
Gifts are being delivered or picked up by families throughout the week, depending on availability. Kruger personally delivers to several families, while others collect their gifts at the school.
As the wrapping paper is cleared and the final deliveries are made, organizers are already looking ahead.
“We can always use cash donations or gift cards for gas and groceries,” Kruger said. “Anything we receive will go toward next year’s program.”
Students involved in Operation Santa see it as more than a holiday project. Small acts, multiplied across a community, can bring warmth and dignity to families when they need it most.