For children, one of the most magical aspects of the holiday season is receiving gifts from loved ones. Their faces light up like the bulbs on a tree when they find beautifully wrapped boxes and bags waiting for them on Christmas morning.

And every child deserves to experience the joy of the holiday season, whether their parents can afford to play Santa or not. But are adults entitled to the same treatment? Below, you’ll find a conversation that raised some eyebrows on Reddit recently, after a woman admitted that she requested gifts for herself through the USPS Operation Santa program. 

The holiday season is a great time to show our love for others through gift giving

Image credits: Andrea Piacquadio / Pexels (not the actual photo)

But because not every family can afford presents, the USPS has an Operation Santa program that allows those in need to request gifts from anonymous “Santas”

Image credits:  Irina Iriser / Pexels (not the actual photo)

Now, one woman who sent a letter is complaining because she didn’t get everything on her wish list

Image credits: Critical_Parsley_121

Later, the woman shared some details about the gifts she requested and received

Some readers argued that the program is not just for kids, but others disagreed

Image credits: Marina Abrosimova  / Pexels (not the actual photo)

“Most people giving to these programs don’t have an unlimited amount of money and are making sacrifices of their own to help kids out”

As adults, we understand that the holiday season is about so much more than giving and receiving gifts. But for young children, this can be hard to understand, especially when they’ll see peers receiving brand new video game consoles and roller blades. We can’t help but want to give little ones the most magical Christmases we possible can. That’s why the USPS created the Operation Santa program.

This program has been around since 1912, but has only been open for participation nationwide since 2020. According to the Operation Santa website, the whole process only takes a few simple steps. The mailroom accepts letters to Santa, and those who want to give can “adopt” letters. By doing so, they volunteer to purchase and mail the gifts requested.

To learn more about how this conversation started in the first place, we reached out to the Reddit user who shared this post in the first place, Critical_Parsley_121, who was was kind enough to have a chat with Bored Panda. “I love all of the holiday giving and charitableness during the holidays, especially when it comes to making the holiday special for kids,” the OP explained. 

“When I saw this person’s comments on Reddit about how they were a fully grown adult (my same age) who not only got gifts through this program, but was upset they didn’t get more, made me feel gross about how these programs can bring out the greed in people,” she continued. “Most people giving to these programs don’t have an unlimited amount of money and are making sacrifices of their own to help kids out… To turn it into an ungrateful money grab is gross.”

Image credits: Julia M Cameron  / Pexels (not the actual photo)

“I know not everyone has the means to give, but adults shouldn’t be taking in these scenarios”

While the USPS does not explicitly state on the Operation Santa website that the program is for children only, the OP pointed out that it does mention buying gifts for “children and families” frequently. “You’re also writing to SANTA, so I think it’s pretty clear it’s for kids,” Critical_Parsley_121 added. “There is a part of the FAQ section that says Christmas magic is for all ages, which if that’s their program, that’s fine. But I think people should be required to disclose their ages, as most people (myself included) want to buy for kids since kids are the ones who get so much joy from the magic of gifts from Santa and can’t buy things for themselves.”

The OP also says that she wasn’t shocked to read these comments, but she was disappointed. “It made me sad that someone in Florida went out and spent time and money getting her a duffle bag and sweater, and she called them ‘cheap Santa’ in another comment,” she noted. “It made me sad that she expected for a stranger to use their hard earned money to buy her hundreds of dollars worth of electronics instead of being grateful for what she got. And it made me sad that she clearly knew someone was more likely to buy for a child, which is why she didn’t disclose her age, and there are tons of children left on that list who aren’t getting sent anything.”

“I end up a lot happier giving to kids than getting from unassuming strangers”

“I’m the same age as this poster, and I’m thankful that I have disposable income to give to programs like this,” Critical_Parsley_121 continued. “My boyfriend and I adopted two Angel Tree Angels and had so much fun buying gifts for them. To me, the joy of Christmas is spreading it. And I guarantee I end up a lot happier giving to kids than getting from unassuming strangers and essentially taking from kids. I know not everyone has the means to give, but adults shouldn’t be taking in these scenarios.”

The OP also said she enjoyed reading through the responses to her post, as she appreciated that so many people felt the same way about the situation. She added that the original commenter deleted her remarks as well, so hopefully she understood why readers were so upset. 

“I also learned about the thorough verification process for Salvation Army’s Angel Tree, and I will definitely continue participating in that program,” Critical_Parsley_121 added, noting that her opinion on Operation Santa has changed after learning more about it from this post. “The fact that it isn’t explicitly for kids and specifically kids in need bothers me,” the OP says. “Some commenters said they’d bought for it in the past and then were shocked that they had to spend more on shipping than the gifts cost. And givers have to ship through USPS to get the address they’re sending to.”

“I’m surprised USPS doesn’t offer free or at least discounted shipping for folks donating,” the OP continued. “It seems like maybe this is a revenue growth strategy for USPS? I don’t know, but there are a lot of ways to give with time and money around the holidays. I’d encourage anyone who can to seek out opportunities to help others during this time.”

Image credits: Karolina Grabowska  / Pexels (not the actual photo)

Many parents can’t afford to purchase Christmas presents without the help of programs like this

According to a study by Credit Karma, 39% of Americans said they were unable to afford gifts during last year’s holiday season. Many also had to make sacrifices to ensure they could put gifts under the tree, with 32% sacrificing their savings, 24% skipping traveling, 20% choosing not to put up holiday decor and 19% decided not to host holiday events to save money. A whopping 70% even admitted that they were planning to take on debts to ensure their families had a magical Christmas.

Of course, giving gifts is not only a burden for families in the United States. In recent years, the pandemic and inflation have hit nearly every nation brutally hard. Big Issue reported that in 2020, 1 in 5 children in the UK wouldn’t even be able to receive a Christmas present, and over half of parents were concerned about how they were going to afford Christmas in general.

While the holiday season is a special time for many reasons, there’s no denying that it feels great to make a child’s day by giving them the present of their dreams. Or, perhaps even a 30-year-old’s day? We’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below, pandas. Then, if you’re interested in reading another Bored Panda article discussing Christmas gifts, look no further than right here. 

Many readers called out the woman for requesting gifts in the first place, noting that children deserve the presents more

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