An Unexpected Blessing, Year After Year

An excerpt from USA Today - 

Decades ago, a mystery man spent thousands to give an Ohio family 'a nice visit from Santa Claus'

By Mark J. Price, Akron Beacon Journal

Mary Arnold sits at a table with her nine children on Dec. 23, 1955, to look for gift ideas
in the Beacon Journal after receiving $100 from a mysterious benefactor in Akron.  
The kids, from left, are Carla, 3, Gary, 5, Mona, 9, Gale, 8, Cathy, 14, Donna, 7 months,
Gerald 2, John 7, and Royal 11.  Beacon Journal File Photo

AKRON, Ohio — Santa Claus really did exist.

Helen Arnold met him unexpectedly in 1953 while shopping at Polsky’s department store in downtown Akron.

The brief encounter changed her family's lives. From that year to 1965, the Arnolds had a generous secret Santa at Christmastime.

With her weekly pay as a dishwasher, Helen had only $37 to spend on gifts in 1953. Her husband, Roy, had been laid off from the Akron Sanitation Department, and the couple had eight kids — Cathy, Royal, Mona, Gale, John, Gary, Carla, and Gerald — and would soon welcome a ninth, Donna. A 10th child, Marsha, had died as a baby.

They resided in a small home below a nearby bridge. In addition to the family of 10, Helen’s parents, brother, two sisters, and their three children also lived there.

Royal Arnold, 76, of Akron understood that it was a struggle for his parents to pay the bills. He even offered to make do with less so that his siblings might have more.

“I remember telling her that ‘If you don’t have enough to get me a Christmas gift, don’t worry about it,’” he said.

Royal was 9 years old in 1953 when he and three siblings accompanied their mom to Polsky’s. They were browsing the bargain basement when a stranger approached them.

“Are these your children?” the man asked Helen. “They’re lovely children and well-behaved.”

Before Helen knew what was happening, the stranger placed a $20 bill in her hand and said: “Buy them something nice for Christmas.”

He then disappeared into the bustling crowd. It happened so fast that Helen didn’t get a good look at him, but she later described him as short, white and slim, maybe 50 years old with graying brown hair.

“All I remember is holding my mother’s hand and my mother was shocked,” Royal said.

It was a Christmas miracle. Helen went home that night and jotted a note to the Akron Beacon Journal, now part of the USA TODAY Network:

(This is Faye.  Please click the link for the rest of the story.  It gets better and better.).

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2020/12/24/secret-santa-helped-akron-ohio-family-christmas-over-decade/4010569001/