For 55 years, the tiny Alaskan town of North Pole has been diligently answering a deluge of letters addressed to Santa Claus.
But the tradition has come to an abrupt halt after strict new anti-paedophile rules effectively closed down the town's festive service.
Hundreds of letters which have already arrived from eager children across the States may now be recycled.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1229485/Its-like-Grinch-trying-steal-Christmas-Strict-anti-paedophile-rules-Santa-Claus-letters-close-North-Pole.html#ixzz0VEXns7ON
The US Postal Service cancelled its Operation Santa programme which answers 150,000 children's letter every year, after a volunteer was unmasked as a sex offender.
He was sacked before he could answer any letters, but the incident in Maryland sparked a nationwide clampdown.
Operation Santa had relied on thousands of volunteers to open the post and respond on behalf of Father Christmas, identifying themselves as the his elves and helpers.
These will now be replaced by a computerised system - blocking individuals access to children's names and addresses.
However, the post office which serves North Pole, near the city of Fairbanks, simply cannot deal with editing out the names and replacing them with codes.
North Pole residents are likening the Postal Service to the Grinch trying to steal Christmas.
The letter programme is a revered holiday tradition in the town, where light posts are curved and striped like candy canes and streets have names such as Kris Kringle Drive and Santa Claus Lane
Huge tourist attractions here include an everything-Christmas store, Santa Claus House and the post office, where visitors can get a hand-stamped postmark on their postcards and packages.
Mayor Doug Isaacson said: ‘Which Grinch would conceive of something so sinister? Business and civic organisations gear up for this.'
The North Pole programme began in 1954 and volunteers had planned to begin answering letters on December 3.
'We have gotten everyone fighting for it,' Alma Rider, secretary of Santa's Seniors said.
'The letters are already here. There are about four good-sized cases of them.'
The Postal Service began restricting its policies in such programmes in 2006, including requiring volunteers to show identification.
But the Maryland incident involving the sex offender prompted more changes, even forcing the agency to briefly suspend the Operation Santa programme last year in New York and Chicago before reinstating it with the same restrictions implemented nationwide this year.
Postal Service spokesman Sue Brennan said no one is barred from continuing their programmes, but they have to comply with the rules.
But Alaskan Senator Lisa Murkowski is still hoping that for a change of mind.
'Children across the world will be anticipating a letter from Santa this Christmas,' she wrote to the US Postmaster General.
'I believe that a small action by the Postal Service to continue the tradition.. could go a long way to bring joy to these children and their families
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1229485/Its-like-Grinch-trying-steal-Christmas-Strict-anti-paedophile-rules-Santa-Claus-letters-close-North-Pole.html#ixzz0VEXns7ON
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