Victor, N.Y. - The sights and sounds that create a magical holiday scene for so many children are exactly what cause deep anxiety for some children with autism and special needs. That's why Eastview Mall is offering special Santa hours every Tuesday morning during the holiday season, from 9 to 10 am, before the mall opens.
"Children with autism often have a hard time experiencing large crowds, loud noises," says Kevin Schoenl, a father from Greece whose five-year-old son has autism. Kevin plans to take his son to Eastview Mall this coming Tuesday to finally visit Santa. "I want to thank them for this opportunity because it will probably be the best gift that my family receives this year," Kevin says. "To have the chance to take my son to see Santa, and to see the joy on his face like most parents get to is going to be a great experience for me."
Eastview's Santa is specially trained in working with children with special needs, including autism. We asked Santa what that training will offer for families.
"We try to make them very comfortable in a quiet surrounding where they're not distracted, they're not nervous," Santa explains. "We try to make it a very homey setting for them to try to communicate with Santa and Santa to communicate with them." He smiled and added, "It's important for children to have this opportunity. Some special children can be over-stimulated by loud bells and large crowds. On Tuesday mornings, it will be peaceful and safe and quiet."
Representatives from Eastview Mall explain that they hope for strong turnouts in this new program on Tuesday mornings. With success, the mall will bring the program back in years to come.
