So, on Tessa's & Anna's list this is supposed to be 'Write a letter to a MP about an important issue'. I'm only guessing, but I think Tessa being a lawyer may have added this one. But I decided to tweak this one to my own agenda. I decided to write a letter to two shopping centre chains, Stockland & Westfield, and to my local Shopping Centre Canelands, to suggest they bring back free Santa photos. This is to give those who are unable to afford the ridiculous price of photos for their children, an opportunity to get one and to bring back the true meaning of Christmas. This may not be considered an 'important' issue to many, but it is one close to my heart. I don't really expect any great result or perhaps even a reply, but you never know. If you are interested below is the letter I sent.
17th April 2023
Subject: The Spirit of Christmas
To Whom It May Concern:
I am writing to you regarding the Santa Photos you have in your Shopping Centres each year. Let me preface this letter by saying that I think it’s wonderful that you give children the opportunity and experience to meet Santa and have a photo with him each year. I know these are memories that both children, and their parents, will cherish for many years. But I wonder if over the years if the profit has outweighed the meaning and the spirit of it all.
I would like to tell you the story of how two teenagers started their Santa photo tradition some twenty years ago. My best friend Jill and I were primary school friends, who ended up going to different high schools. At the end of our first year of high school in 1999, we went on a shopping trip to Rockhampton and went to Kmart Plaza, as it was known at the time. There we stumbled across a Santa photo set-up, where you could get a free photo. Even though we were now in high school we thought it would be fun to get a photo together. We made a pact to get one every year together. Neither one of us could have imagined just how long this tradition would last. It wasn’t always easy to coordinate, as we got older, life as it does, gets in the way, and we lived in different places, with Jill even living overseas for several years. But each year we would come together, two ‘big’ kids and get our photo. In later years we would post our Santa photos to our Social Media accounts, and they would become famous amongst our family and friends, with many always commenting on how much they looked forward to seeing them each year. Our last photo in person was in 2019, Jill was living in Africa at this time and due to Covid she could not come back to Australia for Xmas both in 2020 and 2021, however we still did our own take on a photo, even miles apart, to keep the tradition alive. We were excited for our big reunion in 2022, Jill would be back in Australia for Xmas, she had her flights booked to Mackay (where I currently live), and our photo session was booked in for 21st December. In a tragic turn of events, Jill would never make it back to Australia, as in November she was in a car accident and sadly passed away at the age of 36. As you could imagine, this news was devastating to myself and all of Jill’s family and friends and is a loss we are all still feeling and processing.
My memories of my best friend, and our Santa photo tradition, I will cherish for all my years to come. But it does have me reflecting on the price of our Santa photos from when it first started (free), to the price of it today (sometimes up to $50). The increase in price was something Jill and I commented on each year. Now more than ever, the cost of living is at an all-time high, this is even more true for parents around Xmas’s time. I am sure there are many children out there who would love the opportunity to have a photo with Santa, but with the price being extremely high, their parents would not be able to afford this. I know it’s probably not feasible for all Santa photos to be free, but I would love for you to consider having a day or two around the Xmas period, where there would be an opportunity for a free photo, or even the opportunity for kids to meet Santa and for parents to take their own photos. I think in doing this, this would bring back the spirit of Christmas and perhaps give some children an experience they might not have afforded otherwise, and who knows, it might spark two best friends to start their own photo tradition.
I appreciate your time in reading this and I sincerely hope you do take the time to consider my suggestion. I have also included a photo of all our Santa photos over the 22 years.
From myself & on behalf of my best friend Jill, just two big kids at heart, who still love Christmas.
Kind Regards
Cassandra Hackney
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