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The mountain area’s newspaper since 1958
est. 1958
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NOW SERVING EVERGREEN, CONIFER, BAILEY AND PINE
A little joy, magic for Christmas Evergreen woman helps Santa respond to kids with personalized letters BY DEB HURLEY BROBST DBROBST@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
Whitney Pickering knows how to create Christmas magic. Children are filled with wonder and parents are grateful for the joy she has brought as she helps Santa respond to kids’ letters. The Wah Keeney Park resident has helped Santa write close to 400 individualized letters this holiday season. Pickering is a dental assistant at LeVos Dentistry by day, and Santa’s helper by night and on weekends. In fact, Santa and Mrs. Claus visited her home last weekend to greet kids as their families drove by. Christmas has always been a big holiday for Pickering, and after moving to Evergreen in June 2019, she and her fiancé Will Knause decorated their home inside and out for Christmas. Then Pickering found an old mailbox. “Last Thanksgiving (2019), I kind of wanted to do something fun,” she said. “So I put the mailbox outside my house and posted on Facebook that kids who wrote letters would get a response from Santa.” She responded to 43 letters, thinking the turnout was impressive. She understands the importance of getting a personalized response from Santa, remembering as a little SEE SANTA LETTERS, P18
75 CENTS
Evergreen Takeout looking for support Restaurants asking the community for more business, so they can continue to operate BY DEB HURLEY BROBST DBROBST@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM
A group of Evergreen restaurants — concerned about the devastating impacts of no inside dining because of the pandemic — has formed a coalition to get people to order takeout.
Whitney Pickering, who is Santa’s helper, has brought letters from Santa to area children this Christmas season. She holds a box of letters from Santa ready to be PHOTO BY DEB HURLEY BROBST mailed.
Evergreen Takeout wants people to order food and beverages, especially on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Last week was the first week of the effort, and restaurant owners reported some success. The 21 restaurants have created a website — evergreentakeout.com — as a one-stop place to link to the eateries, their menus and their contact information. They are trying to make takeout ordering as effortless as possible. Now, their biggest challenge is getting the word out that not only are they open for business but that SEE RESTAURANTS, P2
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2 Hanukkah 11 Sports
4 Opinion 12 Puzzles
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