Please remember to include name and address.
Even Santa needs a little help
every now and then
Postal Service plays elf with a
postmark from the North Pole
THE NORTH POLE - He may be able to visit
every boy and girl around the world in one night, but Santa relies on
the holiday magic of the US Postal Service to deliver his mail.
Parents wishing to have a letter from Santa sent to their children need to follow three simple steps and remember the deadline of Dec. 15.
Parents are encouraged to work with their children
while they write letters to Santa so they can pick up a few tips when
they later help craft Santa's reply.
Once the reply is written, "Santa's response" should be placed in a stamped envelope addressed to the child.
This envelope should then be placed in a larger, properly stamped, First-Class Mail or Priority Mail envelope and mailed to:
North Pole Christmas CancellationPostmaster
5400 Mail Trail
Fairbanks, AK 99709-9998
North Pole postmark requests must arrive in
Fairbanks, AK, before Dec. 15. After that date, it is recommended that
Priority Mail be used.
Postal elves at the nearby North Pole Post Office will postmark Santa's replies and mail them back to the children.
"Delivering the holidays is what the Postal Service
does best," said Delores Killette, vice president and consumer
advocate. "Spending time as a family is something we treasure the most
this time of year. We're happy to help make the season sparkle."
Parents can ask children to write about why the
holiday season is special or identify special memories or achievements
of the year. This makes Santa's response more personal to the child.
"These letters also help teach the importance of
using a proper address and ZIP Code when writing and sending mail,"
Killette said. "We expect to deliver 20 billion letters and packages
this holiday season, so the proper address is very helpful to us."
Other cities participating in the holiday postmark
program include Bethlehem, PA; Garland, UT; Nazareth, MI; Antler, ND;
and Snowflake, AZ, among others. Follow the same guidelines used for the
North Pole cancellation. Stamped and addressed greeting cards should be
sent in a larger envelope addressed to "Postmaster" and include city,
state and ZIP Code.
For a complete list of holiday-sounding postmarks with ZIP codes, please visit the Holiday Press Room at USPS.com.
Please note: A high resolution PDF of the North Pole postmark is available for download and reprint.
Contact Info
Joanne Veto202-268-3118
joanne.m.veto@usps.gov
Related Links
Holiday Press Room at USPS.comCardStore at USPS.com