Hear Philly: Running Of The Santas Is Coming To Town
By Andrew Kramer
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) - You better watch out! Thousands of "Santas" will flood the streets of Philadelphia for the 18th year on December 13th.
The Running of the Santas is an all day festival that event producer Matt McDermott says features 8,000-10,000 people dressed as Jolly St. Nick or wearing other holiday gear:
"They get together and meet at a location in Northern Liberties called 'the South Pole' and then at 4 p.m., all the Santas run to 'the North Pole,' which this year is the Electric Factory. We have 12 live bands including a national act, Ed Kowalczyk - he used to be the singer of the band Live.
Once in costume, participants come to Spring Garden Street for what McDermott describes as a full day of fun:
"It's really cool to see the Santas trickling in early in the morning, and then by 1 p.m. or 2 p.m., Northern Liberties is just packed with Santa Claus's, and then at 4 p.m. we have what we call a run...it's really a short parade of three-and-a-half blocks from McFadden's on 3rd and Spring Garden to the Electric Factory on 6th Street, and when they get to that 'North Pole' there's live music, we have heated tents, just all kinds of stuff going on."
Don't have a Santa Claus outfit lying around in your closet? McDermott says that's fine:
"That's another great aspect of the event is that the creativity that goes behind the costumes. We have everything from decked out Mummer's-type cool costumes to, we always think back to the years where this one guy just shows up in plain clothes and a Christmas tree."
While fun to see, McDermott says this event serves another important purpose:
"It gets a lot of publicity because we're also donating a portion of the prices to the Ellie Koerner Leukemia Foundation, so you can get a ticket for as low as $15 and a portion of that goes to help those kids with pediatric cancer."
Of course, an event like this appeals to the twentysomething crowd looking to party, but McDermott says it always attracts a wider range of people:
"When we're selecting our bands to get to go into this event, everything from the new stuff to the classic stuff to the country to the hip hop, so we find that the ages range from 21-61. It's really one of those events where everyone's coming, everyone's dressed the same and everyone's there to have a good time."
McDermott adds this event falls right before Christmas, which can prove to be a great stress reliever, as well as the perfect social setting:
"This is an event that people have gotten married at, people have got engaged at, they meet their future spouse-to-be. It's amazing how over this time I hear so many great stories about how people met, how they come together."
Santas will start gathering around 10 a.m. and once you get your wristband you can head to the different venues all day long.
For more information or to purchase tickets visit the Running of the Santas website.
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