It was a fun-filled two days of holiday cheer as the Progress Center for Black Women hosted its sixth annual ‘Photos with Santa’ event on Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 7-8. The event has become so popular that this year it was held two different days in two different places: Saturday at Madison College South and Sunday at the Madison Children’s Museum in downtown Madison.
“Part of our reason for offering two days this year was to cut back on how long it took some people to get through the line like we saw last year. I think offering a second place really helped this year,” Progress Center for Black Women founder Sabrina Madison tells Madison365. “And for the folks who came to the Madison College location on Saturday, we heard people over and over saying they chose to come specifically there to try to avoid the line at the museum. So for them, it worked.”
(Photo by Shalicia Johnson)
Sunday’s event offered children and adults of all ages an opportunity to take free photos with a Black Santa while getting access to all of the activities of the Madison Children’s Museum for free. Shalicia Johnson of Arrowstar Photography once again took all of the photos. Dynae Allice Photography provided all of the photography on Saturday at Madison College South.
For the third year, the Madison Reading Project provided a wide array of books to the kids, for free, as they waited in line for Santa.
“The free books were popular with the kids and families,” Madison says. “I love that they always include books that are in Spanish. There were several Latino families in attendance, but there was one in particular that I remember where all the kids individually had a book, and for each of those kids, the books that they chose were in Spanish.”
Having longtime Madison community leader Anthony Cooper as Santa was very special for many of the children. Madison says having a Black Santa Claus was an amazing and memorable experience for attendees of all ages.
“Starting at year one, we would get these newborn babies at the event that were not quite one year old. And so for those kids, that was their first photo with any Santa,” Madison says. “And now for a lot of those kids, Anthony [Cooper] is the only Santa that they’ve ever taken their pictures with. I just love that.”
Madison says that at Madison College there was a family of four with kids who were about four to six years old who told her they went to the mall and when they saw Santa there, the children said, “That’s not Santa!”
“The kids started crying with the Santa at the mall, but they didn’t cry for us. When they saw Anthony, they ran right into his arms,” Madison smiles.
“Anthony has been a great Santa for so many kids for the event, and we’re just loving it. The kids love it; but the adults love it, too,” Madison continues. “So many adults of all backgrounds are excited to say, ‘This is my first photo with Santa.’ They are equally excited to get their photos with Anthony. Even as an adult, it’s their first photo with a Black Santa.”
The annual ‘Photos with Santa’ has become a really popular event for The Progress Center for Black Women, a Madison-area non-profit whose mission has been “to build and design an innovative center that serves as a hub of community, connections, valued experiences and opportunities for Black women to transform their lives and families.”
The first two Photos with Santa events were held at the Progress Center. During the first year of COVID, they distributed treat bags to the community. Since 2021, the Photos with Santa have been held at the Madison Children’s Museum.
“My favorite part about this event is, honestly, probably running into the kids as they’re growing,” Madison says. “We got to see them when they were little ones, and it’s fun to see how they grow and how they remember us. Kids will come up and give me a hug and they are really excited to just see us again year after year. I’m just happy to continue to see these kids growing.”
