Despite what former Fox News presenter Megyn Kelly once insisted on air, Santa Claus sometimes – many times, actually – is not white. Kids and community members will see that once again this Friday, Dec. 21, at the annual Dinner with Soul Santa celebration at Fountain of Life Covenant Church where the man they tell all of the things they want for Christmas to will be young, black, 6’6” and wearing shades. Oh, Santa is a very talented rapper, too.
“With Dinner with Soul Santa, we wanted to host something cultural where families and kids of color could see things in a positive light and see people who might look like themselves,” Jacquelyn Hunt, organizer of the annual Dinner with Soul Santa event, tells Madison365. Soul Santa will be once again portrayed by Hunt’s son, Jerome Hunt. “To see black people volunteering and doing wonderful things and, of course, Black Santa. The kids just love him and it’s a fun event.”
This Friday will mark the 10th Anniversary Dinner with Soul Santa, a free community event which brings families together for food, fun and fellowship during the holiday season at Fountain of Life Church on Madison’s south side. Hunt created the event about 10 years ago and it has been going strong ever since.
Hunt is well known throughout the Madison community for her work to create spaces for families to feel cared for and supported during potentially stressful times. She helps to organize several staple events including the Pre Mother’s Day Brunch, The Back 2 Skool Bash, and Dinner with Soul Santa.
“Dinner with Soul Santa is a great community gathering,” she says. “The event was created as a way for families to come together during the Christmas holidays to do arts and crafts projects with their kids, to have a meal together and to allow children to see Santa Claus from a different cultural perspective.”
Dinner with Soul Santa is also being hosted by FOSTER (Families Overcoming Struggles To Encourage Restoration) whose mission is to support low-income families of color to get to a place of self-sufficiency through mental health awareness, education, training, and stable affordable housing.
“The essence of the event started way back in the day with Ms. Milele [Chikasa Anana],” Hunt remembers. “Every year for Christmas Eve she would take all of my kids and a few other moms’ kids out for breakfast to give us moms a chance to finish up some last-minute shopping. She would allow our kids to get things at the dollar store and wrap them up.
“She did that for a number of our single moms in the community and then together we started to do the dinner with Soul Santa at Old Country Buffet,” Hunt continues. “Old Country Buffet would sponsor all of the kids’ meals and then me and Ms. Milele would pay the $10 for adult parents to eat.
“When Milele got sick, I continued to do it in her honor and we moved it to the community and it has been going strong ever since,” she adds.
FOSTER, a program launched by Hunt, currently partners with Fountain of Life Covenant Church and Nehemiah Center for Urban Leadership, who is helping to sponsor the Dinner with Soul Santa event.
“We have a number of community members who have made great donations for the event,” Hunt says.
The dinner with Soul Santa is a family friendly evening where families come together to share in a holiday celebration. Disney characters will be available for photos and Christmas songs are sung throughout the night. A room is transformed into a winter wonderland where the kids get to visit with Soul Santa and receive goodies and gifts.
“We will be doing face-painting again this year and we will make candy sleighs and we’re going to make Christmas trees and decorate Gingerbread Houses and do the 12 days of Christmas,” Hunt says. “Foxy, who is a solo artist now and who used to be a part of Trilogy, will be performing.”
This event was created to meet the cultural needs of families of color and to give children an opportunity to see a Santa who reflects their cultural identity. Thanks to generous sponsors, soul food will be catered by Melly Mel’s.
“We have a sign-up genius on my page. We still really need volunteers to come in and help out,” Hunt says. “We’re looking forward to an amazing event this year.”
Dinner with Soul Santa will take place Friday, Dec. 21, 5:30 p.m. at Fountain of Life Church, 633 W. Badger Rd. For more information about Dinner with Soul Santa or to volunteer, click here.
