LOS ANGELES, CA — For generations, writing a letter to Santa Claus has been a tradition during the holidays. And for some kind-hearted folks, answering those letters has also been a holiday custom for the past century.

Back in 1912, Postmaster General Frank Hitchcock first authorized U.S. Post Office Department employees and local citizens to respond to the many letters written to Santa. The holiday goodwill program, known as Operation Santa, has changed over the years but continues to make wishes come true. In the 1940s, mail volume for Santa grew so much that the Post Office invited local businesses and charitable organizations to participate.

Today, over a hundred years later, handwritten letters containing dreams and wishes still arrive at Post Offices addressed to Santa Claus. Although current privacy and security regulations prevent personal information contained in the letters (such as a last name and address) being provided to the public, the program continues on in many locations with the U.S. Postal Service stepping in as middle man.

Businesses and corporations, charitable groups and individual citizens can adopt letters from children or families who may need some extra help this year. Personal information in the letters is redacted by USPS staff and those who adopt letters make a return trip to the Post Office to mail the letter or package and pay the postage. USPS staff applies the name and address and gets it delivered.

Anyone interested in answering a letter written to Santa can visit one of the Operation Santa locations in the greater Los Angeles area listed below by the ZIP Codes that location serves, only on Dec. 4, 9, 11, 16 and 18; from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Photo identification must be presented to adopt a letter. Participants will be provided a copy of the Santa letter of their choice, which is coded and has had personal information removed. When they return to mail a gift letter or package, the Postal Service will match the coded photocopy Santa letter with the original and apply the name and address to the item.

# # #

Please Note: For broadcast quality video and audio, photo stills and other media resources, visit the USPS Newsroom at about.usps.com/news/welcome.htm. A complete list of the holiday shipping deadlines can be found at usps.com/holidaynews.

For reporters interested in speaking with a regional Postal Service public relations professional, please go to about.usps.com/news/media-contacts/usps-local-media-contacts.pdf. Follow us on Twitter (twitter.com/usps), Instagram (instagram.com/uspostalservice), Pinterest (pinterest.com/uspsstamps), LinkedIn (linkedin.com/company/usps), subscribe to our channel on YouTube (youtube.com/usps), like us on Facebook (facebook.com/usps) and view our Postal Postsblog (uspsblog.com).

For more information about the Postal Service, visit usps.com and usps.com/postalfacts.