B.C. volunteer's handmade 'merry mailbox' inspires 3-year-old to send first letter to Santa

Colwood, B.C. -

Although Finn Coultas is only three and a half years old, he’s a big fan of all things festive.

If he’s not enthusiastically singing "Jingle Bells," Finn’s exuberantly listing everything he knows about Santa.

Although he and his baby brother posed for a picture with the big guy at the mall this year, Finn never considered sending a letter to Mr. Claus until his mom Jenna Massy happened upon an unexpected invitation.

“Oh, I thought it was really sweet,” Jenna recalls, after noticing a pair of festively decorated mailboxes that had popped up on a nearby street.

One said, "Mail your letter to Santa here." The other said, "Check in here for your letter from Santa Claus."

The boxes were put-up by Mike Juleff and his wife in the hopes of helping who they call “The Postmaster Elves.”

“They must be very busy,” Mike says. “So we thought we should put up a ‘Central Collection Station.’”

So they created a place to post letters to the North Pole and another to receive personalized replies from Santa.

“It just adds an element to the magic and excitement of Christmas,” Mike smiles.

Mike says he receives “weekly reports from the North Pole” about the letters left in his merry mailboxes. They show the children’s gift requests have ranged from cuddly stuffed toys to full-sleeve tattoos.

“Not sure how Santa will deal with that,” Mike smiles. “Or if Santa will have to consult with Mom and Dad.”

Mike says it’s also heartening to hear that the children’s letters include not just their wants, but their wishes for the wellbeing of others.

It’s a sentiment Mike can relate to. He has spent the past 13 years travelling more than 7,000 kilometres a year to drive cancer patients to and from their appointments.

“Just being a part of the community is to do things for the community,” Mike says.

Two days after Finn and Jenna dropped off their letter to Santa, they picked-up the hand-written reply.

“It was really cute. He loves it,” Jenna says, pointing out how the letter praised Finn’s positivity, the envelope that included a real bell that says "believe," and the paper that features a picture of Santa are already well worn.

“As you can see, we’ve read it about 50 times.”

While Jenna is thankful the generosity, Mike is grateful for the opportunity.

“It’s just a joy to be able to be part of providing joy,” Mike smiles.

And Finn seems to be feeling so festive, he just might spend the rest of the holidays as though he’s on a one horse open sleigh, “laughing all the way.”