FATHER CHRISTMAS himself has finally landed in Reading, ready to bring festive cheer to the town this Christmas.
On Tuesday, November 29, Santa Claus arrived at Waitrose, Oxford Road for a few preliminary checks of the sleigh.
He was welcomed by Reading Lions Club’s Ian Henderson and Andy Young, as well as the mayor of Reading, Cllr Rachel Eden.
He’ll be visiting a number of roads and locations around Reading between Thursday, December 1, to Tuesday, December 23, helping the club to raise funds for their support of the community.
Ian Henderson, president of Reading Lions Club, said: “We bring Santa and his sleigh to the streets of Reading to give joy to everybody.
“But it’s also important for us to try and make some money for people that are in need.”
He said that Santa’s help makes the event one of the club’s major fundraisers, with last year’s appeal raising more than £7,000.
“We’re a club that waits for something something somebody in need– We’re helping with food banks this Christmas and helping with Ukraine as well.
“We pull it all together and we offer help to anyone that needs it locally– we’ve just made a donation to The Giving Tree, which is run by Reading Connect.
“And hopefully we’re going to get gifts to about 50 or 60 children that would normally get this Christmas.”
Mr Henderson said also that this year has been a busy one for the club, and for getting hold of Santa himself, too.
“It takes us 12 months to pre-book him, as most people have to be pre booked.”
But he says it is well worth the booking, as he said that seeing Santa bringing cheer to Reading: “Is such a great feeling.
“We’re quite a small club, but we have a lot of local volunteers, and it’s one of those events everyone turns out for.
“Because they just love walking around the streets and seeing people happy and listening to music, no matter what the weather.”
Father Christmas will begin his tour of the streets of Reading on Thursday, December 1, beginning in Whitley by visiting streets around Barnsfield Road.
He will then tour around the town, bringing his sleigh to Southcote, Dee Road, Tilehurst, and Kentwood during his first week.
He will also visit streets in Woodcote, The Mount, and Caversham, as well as the Tesco and Waitrose supermarkets on Oxford Road.
A full list of streets and dates on the tour and information about how to donate are available via: www.readinglions.org.uk.
Santa can also be tracked on his route by using gotrak.me/readinglionsclub/
