Santa delights at Parkville Recreation breakfast

Pillow Pets are the in thing this year--at least among the youngsters in attendance at the Parkville Recreation and Parks Council annual breakfast with Santa.

"The older kids, they want video games -- Xbox 360 and Kinect," said recreation council president Ed Pinder, who dressed as the jolly ol' elf for the fourth year running during the Dec. 11 event at Parkville Middle School.

The Parkville recreation council has hosted the breakfast with Santa for the past 12 years. And the Parkville-Carney Business and Professional Association has sponsored the event for the past three.

It takes about $2,000 to pay for all the food, crafts and souvenirs, but according to Pinder it's worth it.

"It's a really neat thing," Pinder said. "It's a way to give back to the community."

The event is free to the public, but families are asked to donate canned goods or unwrapped toys in exchange for a ticket. The donated items are then given to local families in need.

"Each year it gets better and better. ...Every year we're growing," said Maria Ruberti, activity coordinator with the recreation and parks department.

This year's event served about 300 children, who were each sent home with a photo to commemorate their visit with Santa.

For Ruberti, the photos are just another aspect of the event that's improved over the last decade.

"We used to use Polaroids," Ruberti said. "And now it's digital. ...Fancier and fancier," she said.

Many of the families in attendence have children who participate in the recreation council's host of programs.

For Selina Jangbahadur's daughters, who take self-defense classes at the rec center, the breakfast was a chance to socialize a little with some of their classmates.

"My girls are kind of shy," Jangbahadur said. The rec programs "give them something to do other than watch TV. It gets them out of the house."

Avi Jangbahadur made the most of his visit with Santa, asking for a "choo-choo train" to complement the cars and trucks he received last year for Christmas. The five-year-old is confident that he can do what Santa asked of him--leave cookies and milk for the big guy and warm pancakes for the reindeer.

"I like baking and cooking. I make pancakes with my parents," he said proudly.

Before inviting the children to sit on his lap and share their Christmas wishes, Santa made a lap around the cafeteria, high-fiving, ho ho ho-ing and posing for candid photos.

Some of the sprites stared wide-eyed at the bearded man dressed in red, while others clutched their mothers' necks for dear life.

Even the teenage volunteers caught the holiday spirit, having their faces painted and helping the children with their craft projects. Ruberti said they enjoy it just as much as the little ones. "The same ones keep coming," she said with a smile.