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Brought to you by: the City Development Corporation of El Campo – Thanking you for Shopping LOCAL!
Santa was hard at work when Mrs. Claus walked into the shop.
“Santa, thatʼs a wonderful hand-made toy, but itʼs 10 days before Christmas and youʼve still got 427,598,763 wishes on the list. Itʼs TIME to a little SHOPPING.”
“Thereʼs nowhere to go, nothing can rival what the elves and I can do with our own hands,” he said.
Mrs. Claus shook her head. “At this rate, you wonʼt have time to eat Santa, and WE ALL KNOW how much you like to eat.”
“What?! No time to eat!!! Thatʼs, thatʼs, simply not going to work, what are we to do?!” Santa asked.
Zippy, Speedy and Racey had the answer – tickets on the magical express to the friendly Texas town of El Campo. “But weʼve been there before,” Santa said, scratching his head. Speedy nodded five times before Mrs. Claus blinked once.
“Yep, yep, yep,” he said, “But itʼs even better now,” he said. “Better? Letʼs go!” Santa said, leaping aboard. Mrs. Claus opted to ride inside. “So, whatʼs better about El Campo?” he asked?
Arriving in the El Campo city limits, Santa quickly raised his nose to the air and took a BIG WHIFF. “You smell that, Mrs. Claus? Itʼs COOKIES!!!” he said, racing immediately over to the Amyʼs Cookie bakery, right as a fresh batch was coming out of the oven. “Iʼll take the tray,” Santa said, because after all he was going to need a little energy, if he was going to shop El Campo.
“Yum, Yum, Yummy in my tummy!” Santa said, downing his snack with three gallons of milk. “Okay, now where were we?ʼ
El Campo, Texas – home of the Ricebirds, family values, shopping venues and lots of tasty places to eat. But where to start? “ How about with a sure winner?” Mrs. Claus asked. So off to Prairie Rose Emporium the couple went, finding owner Karen Rose checking out a customer before offering to help the most famous gift-giving couple in the world. “We need just a few things,” Santa said, pulling out a relatively small list – just 49,320 things. Luckily Prairie Rose and Shabby Chic 2.0 could fill the order!
“All this shopping is hard work,” Santa said, strolling over to Rice Country Grill for a little break. “Look, candy canes! They must have known we were coming,” Santa said, ordering two bucketfuls for himself and one for the missus, before going down the road to visit Mr. Gattiʼs, Father & Sons, Golden Phoenix and then just a little bitty taste of that Texas soft serve ice cream at the new Dairy Queen. “Wow, thereʼs a new Burger King too and business is still brisk at McDonaldʼs, Taco Bell, Little Caesars, Pizza Hut and Dominoʼs!” Santa said, “Yum!”
It was then Santa stumbled upon a business many El Campo residents may not know exists. Whatʼs Mayfield Supply? Itʼs a company that makes health safety masks and markets them to the general public as well as care agencies. “In the world we live in today thatʼs amazing and so very needed,” Santa said. “Iʼll take a couple of million as stocking stuffers, it could save lives and itʼs lots of job openings for the community.”
Thatʼs not the only truly amazing change Santa discovered –and in the same shopping center. Warrior University may sound like what a medieval knightʼs squire should attend, but itʼs really where you can find rings – the Olympic rings of Team USAʼs womenʼs mixed martial arts.
Clay and Beverly Pratka run the business and Beverly is a world class competitor, one of two Team USA members at the gym. “Maybe I should try to train,” Santa said, crawling into the ring. After five minutes he said, “Wow, what a workout. Thatʼs enough for this year, I think. Iʼm pooped.”
Santa was beginning to run down after all that work, so he went hunting for Ms. Molli, hard at work at her new location Jackson Street Market. “COFFEE... and wait they do baked goods TOO? And, SOUPS? And MORE!” Santa quickly ordered before heading over to More Mail Services to ship some of his many purchases back home, because, well, his magic sack was getting mighty heavy!
Santa soon realized he was horribly short on stocking stuffers and gift wrapping supplies, so his next stop was pOpshelf. Then a quick swing into MidCoast MidTown to pick up a few essentials before going over to VanGorpʼs to find a couple of items he could locate nowhere else! At the Shoe Dept., Ms. Candyʼs stock would surely help out the elves, and then ... Santa figured he deserved a bit of a rest, passing through Joeʼs Italian Restaurantʼs drive through before crossing back across down and coming to a hard stop. “I smell enchiladas and NACHOS! Iʼm SOOOOOO hungry!” Santa said. After sampling just about everything on the Jalepeños menu, he got to-go orders from Best Seafood and Casa Hernandez, Mariaʼs Bakery, Christineʼs Seafood, the Juice Place, and Lauraʼs. Then he dropped into Manna Meals with some donated plates and a big, big thank you for the organizers of the fellowship effort.
Santa thought he was all fueled up and ready to get back to shopping with planned stops at El Torito, DSG Nursery, Bubelaʼs Floors & More ... but WAIT, Santa had not had any genuine Texas barbecue yet! With a twinkle in his eye and a twitch of his nose, he blinked himself over to the highway location of Mikeskaʼs Bar-B-Que with thoughts of brisket in mind. “Oh, my God, they sell sweets!” Santa said, finding a new focus.
After being properly fortified once more, Santa made a stop at Southern Belle Boutique where he saw they were preparing for a major expansion (a discovery bringing excited clapping from Mrs. Claus), and then over to DNJ for some specially printed treats and a quick visit to the Rotary Christmas Party hosted by the 409 Club, and a quick game at the bowling alley.
wait a minute,
never
get that barbecue! Luckily, Pitt Viper BBQʼs new location is open for business!” Santa said. A half dozen of Brandonʼs briskets and nine racks of ribs later Santa was roaming once more. He came to a screeching halt in front of the decorated Beer Ranch. “Thereʼs lots of libations on my list!” he said, making buys for the adults.
“Hey,
I
did
Ms. Debbieʼs COCONUT SHRIMP!” Santa said, stopping at Pinchers Restaurant, greeted by owners Craig and Debbie Radley. “Thereʼs sooo much you can get in Texas that just isnʼt carried up at the North Pole,” Mrs. Claus said, typing in a double-digit ton load order for H-E-B Curbside delivery. “Excellent idea, Mrs. Claus. Weʼll need some snacks for the trip back,” Santa said. While getting ice at El Campo Refrigeration, Santa spotted a four-story building in the distance and quickly turned his 2022 Sled Big Boy. “Letʼs stay at the Hilton Homes2 Suites next year,” Santa said.
“I simply cannot forget
As the Clauses got ready to leave El Campo, the City Development Corporation of El Campo team offered their thanks because “the magic of Christmas always our businesses! The citizens very much appreciate the effect you have when you Shop EL CAMPO, saluting Santaʼs El Campo Shop LOCAL! efforts!” “Ho! Ho! Ho!” Santa said. “Itʼs easy when the city has so much to offer every single day of the year. El Campo has really grown since we first came to shop five years ago,” Mrs. Claus said. “We will definitely be back next year! El Campo is something special!!” As they rode out of sight, Santa proclaimed, “Shop LOCAL!”
Publication made possible by the City Development Corporation of El Campo and the El Campo Leader-News. Copyright ©
2022, Story by Shannon Crabtree. Photos by William Hedstrom, Al Dubé and Crabtree. MERRY CHRISTMAS El CAMPO!
