NORAD Center Tracks Santa

Santa Claus is working late into the night to get your gifts under the tree just in time for Christmas morning.

People across the world are watching his every move on NORAD’s tracking center. Tucked inside the Peterson Air Force Base, the NORAD center transforms into one of Santa’s hubs. His elves otherwise known as volunteers working to answer calls from kids all over the world. Some want to know when he’ll hit their side of the globe, others asking if they’ve made the naughty or nice list.

Micayla Hernandez, a six-year elf says one call sounded like this, “He called asking to speak to speak to Santa and I told him Santa has a very strict no cell phones while flying policy. Well I made cookies for him last night and my brother ate them this morning and I was just calling to see if Santa would understand.”

This tradition started 62 years ago when Air Force Col. Harry Shoup answered a call meant for a Santa tracker in a department’s store advertisement. Instead of hanging up and directing the kids elsewhere, Col. Shoup answered the calls all night.

His daughter, Terri Van Keuren says, “He thought somebody was playing a trick on him. He could have hung up but he was in Christmas all year round so the kind thing to do, the loving thing to do was to pretend your Santa.”

Santa’s elves are taking calls until midnight.