[bells jingling]
[holiday music]
[low level chattering]
- Hi Emma, how are you?
- Good.
- Would you like to tell Santa what you'd like for Christmas?
- Books.
- A guitar.
- A guitar? A real guitar?
- Every year boys and girls around the globe
are excited to tell one of Santa's helpers
what they want for Christmas.
- You want a gumball machine?
- I want a gumball machine.
- You do too?
- But once a year, a handful of children
around Pewaukee are lucky enough
to meet "the" Santa and Mrs. Claus.
- He loves it if somebody leaves him cookies and a little milk.
- We're going to bring something else.
- Yeah, something hot.
- John Nugent knows it's the real Santa and Mrs. Claus
because he hired them.
- I was fortunate to be the 4th generation
in the Nugent family
to be in the temporary help business.
- John is in the temporary staffing industry's hall of fame
and not just because a couple decades ago
he found Santa Claus
for one of the biggest temp jobs of the season.
- We had an order
from the Robert E. Johnson cookie company.
They were interested in having a Santa and
a couple of elves
for a Christmas party for the employees' children.
- Just like magic, Santa showed up and said,
"I can help!"
- Ruth Nugent turned out to be
an even more important hire by John.
Mostly because she was never temporary.
- They met at John's company and married in 1986.
- I want the American Girl doll "Lea"
- Soon Mrs. Claus was showing up with Santa.
- I think Mrs. Claus said,
"It's time that I get to meet some of the children and
get to really feel the joy of Christmas from first hand.
You guys are seven years old?
- But how do the kids know it's the real Santa and Mrs. Claus?
- They know the difference between the real Santa and
Santa's helpers that are in the mall.
- If they weren't real,
how would they know the name of each child's "Elf on a Shelf?"
- Yeah, the elf is telling me all these things.
That's why I write them down.
- Or things that happened over the summer.
- Did you go camping in Dubuque with your grandma and grandpa?
How in the world would anybody know except the real Santa?
- John and Ruth say
Santa and Mrs. Claus keep coming back each season
because they enjoy the work.
- Santa loves to see people happy and
feel like he's contributing to that happiness to some extent.
- That joy is within them.
And if that isn't there,
then our life is kind of...
flat.
- Merry Christmas.
- Hi there Santa. How are ya?
- Good. How are you?
- Real good.
- Hello.
- That joy is why
Santa and Mrs. Claus visit people of all ages.
- Thank you so much for such a nice welcome.
It's wonderful to be back here at Oak Hills Terrace.
- They always wanted to touch the elderly
because they don't get touched enough.
- I hear you've been a good girl this year.
- I have been a very good girl.
- You could see that
they hadn't sat on Santa's lap for a long time and
it brought up their childhood.
It brought back memories for them.
- Well I didn't think I'd be with Santa.
- Oh boy, well...
How lucky can I get?
- Sure, there you go.
- While Santa and Mrs.Claus have brought joy
to the elderly and the ill,
they themselves don't get sick.
- Oh, I don t think so.
- No.
- I don t think they get sick.
- Not that we've ever heard, no.
- Unfortunately, the same can't be said for Ruth and John.
- Yea, I had cancer 11 years ago.
And it was in remission,
and just notified this fall
that the cancer came back and it's stage four in my bones.
- I was very nervous when I found out Ruth's diagnosis.
- They have the same Christmas wish for Santa.
- I've talked to Santa and said,
"If I'm supposed to have this,
help me to have the joy to live while I'm here."
- Okay, good.
- Thank you.
- You're welcome.
- Each day is special.
Each day is a blessing.
Merry Christmas to you.
- Merry Christmas to you.
- Thank you.
- Many, many more.
- Thank you.
- John and Ruth hope to know
Santa and Mrs. Claus for years to come,
- You're getting to be a big guy.
Hey Maxin.
But if that doesn't happen,
they will cherish the time they had.
- I think it's been a real blessing
to be able to have met the real Mr. and Mrs. Claus.
- It's just been a great joy to be able to meet them and
we feel very blessed.