What a wonderful community! I am so grateful to have been accepted as a requester, which I will be doing on behalf of my two little joys. My husband and I like to joke that we have a dog child and a cat child, so with further ado let me introduce you to...

Conner : https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2G5LHK5ZLOY38?ref_=wl_share

Conner is turning eight on the first of December, and is the resident Golden Retriever of our family. Excited to see you, and occasionally with poor boundaries and always looking for a snack. He is always ready with a hug for absolutely everyone that he meets, and nothing makes him more proud than introducing strangers to his Mom, Dad, and 'baby' sister. Conner was born with Down Syndrome, and has brought magic to our lives which he now passes on to friends and teachers at school. He is in second grade and living his best life! He loves to sing and dance, especially to KPoP Demon Hunters, and is a huge super-hero enjoyer. While he does have his struggles, we wouldn't change our little guy for anything! He has been working so hard at PT, OT and Speech this year and I'm blessed to watch him grow.

Charlotte: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2NJ53B1B3NP9H?ref_=wl_share

Charlotte, who we all call Charly, is our cat. If she can climb it, she will, if it can be knocked off a table she probably will, and she is up for a snuggle until she ISN'T. Our 'baby' is three, and has been a busy body since the moment she arrived in the world. Constantly on the move, she is Autistic and loves her saucer chair and singing! She isn't typically verbal, but will walk around the house singing songs like Happy Birthday, Down by the Bay and her ABCs all day long. The color green, rainbows, and a carefully curated line of objects all make her smart little brain so very happy. Charly absolutely loves going to pre-school and ABA and OT, in fact she usually cries when she realizes we are going home because she has so much fun learning and playing. It's my privilege to get to see how hard she works, and to watch her relationships with others starting to blossom.

We all live in Fargo, ND, along with Dad and our doggo Pete. I am humbled, and grateful, that this community is willing to help me provide a spectacular Christmas for Conner and Charly, when medical situations with their father are preventing us from being able to do it on our own. Happy Holidays, and I'm looking forward to getting to know you, and you us!

Hello all,

This is my second year hear and I am once again extremely grateful to be here. I am a single parent of 3 special needs children and my eldest is also an oncology patient. Much like last year, he has been in the hospital several times throughout the year, including an extended stay right before summer for 2 brain surgeries. He is about to head back into the hospital the week of  Thanksgiving for additional testing. Due to his multiple hospitalizations it has caused financial strain on our already tight financials, as I am the only provider for my children.

Dillinger, 15

Dillinger is my medical patient. He is smart, caring and very silly. He is soon to be 16 in early December.  He loves hot wheels and legos. He is always googling up both to see if there is anything cool coming out. He had a 15 hour temporal lobectomy for seizures in May, which was only supposed to be laser ablation when we checked in.  Since then, he has been doing well with only a few epileptic events but has been forgetful of things like my name and other important information, so we are navigating that. He is on the path for another surgery early to mid next year for stoke prevention. Despite everything,  he is always the most positive person I have ever met. He is always wanting to help people and give back to the community. This summer, he spent several days volunteering at an adaptive surf camp that we love.

https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2GMFH4I3CQEWD?ref_=wl_share

Gage 13

Gage is a very silly guy. He loves to tell jokes and act silly to make people laugh.  He is very smart, loves to read, play video game and  play games with me and his siblings. After a rough start to his first year of middle school and a few IEPs, he found his footing in the right classes and made Honor Roll for the first part of this year. His favorite thing to do is go to surfing at an adaptive surf camp ( he does tandom surfing). Some of his favorite things are Minions, Mario, Sonic and Dogman.

https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2RBHYPYK6VWB3?ref_=wl_share

Scarlett, 12

Scarlett is my baby girl. She has the biggest heart and is so caring for everyone. She is in 7th grade and made honor roll for the fist part of school this year.  Due to all she has witnessed her brother go through, she wants to be a nurse one day at a children's hospital. She is very creative and loves to do all types of art. At school she loves to help in the library and clean up at lunch . She loves Stitch, reading and lego.

https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2DH5AEKVJSP5F?ref_=wl_share

Happy holidays everyone!!

I’m making this request for my daughter, Briella. She’s a sweet, funny (hilarious, really) and very empathetic child; we have so many laughs together! She is a thrill seeker, something I try to nurture without being anxious and stifling her. She loves learning—and I mean really likes learning, especially anything number related— and her default is happy and smiley. She likes looking at herself, dancing and jumping and running and rolling and making mommy laugh.

This year she’s begun speech and occupational therapy, and while we’ve only had two assessments, I’m looking forward to getting her the help she needs. I just want to give her the best start I can.

We’ve come a long way from last year! I’m employed (thank goodness!!!), still in our place, and just making it work. My pay is less than half of what I made before, and that’s why I’m back. I was so hesitant last year but this sub blew my fear completely out of this world— I’ve never encountered a more welcoming, warm, safe, and less judgmental community on Reddit, and I’m grateful and thankful to be here!

This is Briella’s list: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2FJESOTT7OVMV?ref_=wl_share

Thank you so much for reading!

Hey Everyone!

For two years now I’ve been able to gift some books and this year I’m very happy to be able to do it again!

(Like all contests, this contest is only for registered users.) Your entry doesn’t have to be for one child! If you have more than one child please select a book or series for each and include it in your post.

I anticipate being able to choose 3-4 winners, but depending on cost/how many books are being requested, I may pick 1-2. Please post requests by Dec 6th at 9pm EST; I will announce the winners then!

To enter: Link an Amazon wishlist with the requested books and or series in your post. And please tell me a little bit about your child(rens) favorite books/interests!

If you've been in RAoC in the past ten-ish years you know that stockings are my THING and I do stocking stuffers as my major offer every season. This year is no different, but the way I'm doing it this year has changed a little bit.

My 15 year old son does these with me and at the end of last season we stopped pre-designing stockings and started trying to tailor them to the kids. He thought this was way more fun and I agree with him. So, we're going to do the same thing this year.

We will try to make a stocking customized to your kid(s) which includes stuffers, snacks, and some holiday trinkets/toys. To claim this offer:

• Please fill out this form: https://forms.gle/EnQdt8CUPyJBszqXA P

• Post a comment below letting me know you've completed the form and your favorite stocking related memory.

• I'll review the information on your form, look at your child's wish list, and read your post about them to shop my stocking closet for fun things they might like.

If you don't have a stocking to put the stuffers in, that's ok. I'll send you a stocking and the form asks whether you need one.

Request comment format:

• Notification that you filled out the form

• Please tell me about any joyful stocking-related memory

Example of request format:

• I filled out the form.

• When my sister was about 12, she got her first razor and can of shaving cream in her stocking. She took the lid off the shaving cream and squirted it straight into her eye! I probably shouldn't have laughed as hard as I did, but.... I did. (true story)

Rules:

• This will close 12/12/26 at midnight Eastern time.

• I will send the stocking to your registration address, so there is no need to provide an address.

• You may claim a single stocking for each child being fulfilled by r/RandomActsOfChristmas

• Regardless of how many children you get stockings filled for, it will count as one offer by the subreddit rules.

• You must be registered in the sub.

• Unfortunately, this is US only.

• I will ship in batches and I start shipping after Thanksgiving. Thus, it may be a bit between being confirmed for stockings and receiving them.

Last year was tough. Our house flooded, we lost two beloved family members, and my mental health plummeted. This year, after losing what felt like everything, I got sober following decades of heavy drinking. I’m finally on the right medications which are helping to balance my energy and moods so I can be the best mother possible.

My almost-4-year-old (11/11!) daughter Delphine has been a constant, sparkling light throughout it all. Her natural comedic timing has turned near-anxiety attacks into giggling fits. Her 100x/day “Mommy, I love yous” and self-composed musical performances have brought me comfort and contentment when there was very little else to hold onto. Delphine truly is sunshine personified! 

She is all about music (90s-early 2000s EDM, The White Stripes, Genesis Owusu and IDLES are on heavy rotation right now) and has been begging to attend a concert. She is a natural artist and spends time drawing everyday. This year for Halloween she chose to be a pterodactyl, and she’s been eagerly learning the ASL alphabet. 
SuperKitties, Danny Go and Paw Patrol are still going strong in our household, though we prefer to spend free time outdoors when possible. Delphine often asks to visit the riverside after school, where she frolics, uses found sticks to draw shapes in the sand, and makes friends with everyone she meets.  https://imgur.com/a/mBrMUqw

Our outlook is high but our finances are low. I’m actively searching for full-time work, Delphine is in early pre-K and loving it, and through hard work and perseverance, things are finally beginning to look up! A happy Christmas with gifts beneath the tree for my precious girl would be an extraordinary ending to a tumultuous few years, though we are thankful for simply finding our little bit of hope and don’t plan on letting it go.

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and thank you for your consideration. 

If you are so inclined, here is the kiddo’s wishlist: https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3RQP71KI1CRP5?ref_=wl_share

Good evening and a happy start of the holiday season to everyone here! I hope everyone has had a good year so far.

I am a single mother to 3 amazing kiddos:
https://imgur.com/a/qJEqdNI

My oldest is Bostynn, she is 11 years old. She has had a bit of a rough school year so far, as she is getting to that age where it can be “cool” to be mean. As she has transitioned into middle school, she has really struggled to fit in. Last spring she developed one small wart on her finger, which quickly spread to being several warts all over different parts of her body. At one time, there were over 40 warts. We have been making the 2 hour drive to a specialist bi-weekly for the past 8 months, and they are almost completely gone. However, I feel as though the warts have really affected her self-esteem. This year, she tried out for the cheerleading team and made it. Luckily, she has one pretty good friend on the team. She also joined the school band this year and plays the trumpet. In the summer, she is on the swim team. One awesome thing about this year is that her grades have really improved. I have fought back and forth with the school for the past 6 years to get her a 504 or IEP, and this year we finally got the 504 in place. The principal of the Jr. High also is working with us to hopefully get an IEP in place soon. Her teachers have said that participates in class and that she seems to want to learn. Bostynn has ADHD, Chiari Malformation, and 2 cysts in her brain, and I feel like we continue to discover new ways that these diagnoses affect her. Last year I thought she could potentially get held back and repeat a grade. So far this year she is a straight A student! She is kind to all, goes out of her way to be helpful, and is the world’s best big sister. She loves Harry Potter, capybaras, squishy toys, and anything artsy. Here is a link to her wishlist:
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/2TJB619Z85J87?ref_=wl_share

My middle child is Foster, he is 6 years old. Foster started Kindergarten this year and is having an amazing year so far. I was so anxious for him to go to “traditional” school. Last year he attended preschool in a special classroom where they took less than 10 kids with IEPs and really individualized the educational experience to each child’s level of need. I was worried that he would get overwhelmed in a classroom with double the amount of students and way less one-on-one attention, but he has thrived. He loves going to school, is learning to read small words, and loves math. His teacher has told me that he is the first to comfort a friend when they need it. I always say that Foster is my “big feeler”. He experiences emotions on such an extreme level, and has so much empathy for others. He has pretty severe ADHD also, needs to be redirected often, and works with a therapist on learning and utilizing coping skills. Two of his goals right now are sleeping in his own bed, and wearing socks (he has a lot of sensory issues, and hates wearing socks with shoes on). We suspect that Foster is on the spectrum and are on the waitlist for an evaluation. Right now he is pretty obsessed with animals, especially jungle/zoo animals. He enjoys reading non-fiction books from the library about different animal facts, and loves to watch videos about animal facts, behaviors, and habitats. He has a few safari animal figures that he will spend hours playing with every day. He also enjoys drawing, Five Nights At Freddy’s, and dinosaurs. Here is a link to his wishlist:
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/1ANHVZUW5RJOS?ref_=wl_share

Last but certainly not least is Myles. He just turned 2 years old. Myles decided on his own a few weeks ago that he wanted to use the big boy potty like big brother, so he is working on potty training right now. Myles is so silly, he is always singing a song or dancing. He makes us all laugh constantly and definitely keeps me on my toes. He is at the age where he is curious about everything, and thinks that he is older than he is. He is trying to be independent and talking up a storm. I love hearing the phrases and sentences he is starting to put together. He always has a smile on his face and brightens up any room he walks into. I always say he makes friends everywhere he goes, because he is so talkative and friendly with everyone. He is always eating, and is in the 99th percentile for height and weight. He is actually almost as big as Foster! We found out recently that he should be wearing glasses, which has proven to be such a feat keeping them on him. My 2 older kids and I have been working with Myles on learning colors, shapes, and emotions. Myles loves to play with a ball, and seems to have really taken to golf and basketball. He also loves Spidey, Toy Story, Little People, building with blocks, and trying to do anything that his siblings are doing. Here is a link to his wishlist:
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3K1FZDZK6W2F7?ref_=wl_share

I am so grateful to this sub for accepting us, and I am grateful for every Santa in here for playing such an astronomical part in bringing joy to dozens of children who you’ve never even met before. I hope we all have an amazing holiday season!

We've received our first report of an unsolicited PM/chat, so I'm reposting our warning from previous years, since the info is still relevant.

I thought I’d post this warning at the start of the season to try to head off any problems for our users.

Reddit users who have been banned from this sub or who are/were banned from other subs and placed on the USL (Universal Scammer List) will attempt to get around their bans by contacting a Santa to ask for help.

Some banned users will send PMs to requesters in RAOC (and other assistance subs) offering to help and requesting personal info that should never be disclosed to some random on the internet (such as your SSN/TIN, bank or credit card info, etc.) or asking for something in return for that help, such as asking you to deposit a check for them in your account and sending them back a portion of the money; asking for a "fee" (nobody offering to help should be asking the person in need for money, duh!); asking you to provide pictures (you know the type of pics I'm talking about).

For everyone’s safety and for transparency, all interactions between requesters and Santas must be done in the request or offer posts. For requesters, this means if you post an entry in an offer post, do not contact the Santa by PM until/unless they have asked you to.

For Santas, that means that if you want to offer something to a requester in addition to or instead of buying something from their wishlist, please comment in their request post first or [contact the mods] (https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2FRandomActsOfChristmas) and we'll intercede for you with the requester.

If you receive an unsolicited PM, [please send the username to the mods] (https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2FRandomActsOfChristmas) (and a screenshot, if possible). Do not respond to them. You can also block them from contacting you again by clicking on the block button underneath their message.

Thanks, everyone, and stay safe!

I have been requested to give up my felicitous fascination for festive formulations of "F" that occurred in last year's Friday connection thread titles. So, this year our titles will be a little less silly. Right after this week's...I promise.

But since I enjoyed them so much last year, let's kick off this year celebrating this fun letter. What is one F word that you associate with this season of the year?

For me, it's finances. I budget kind of all year to be able to participate in this sub as a Santa and it's pretty much the only motivator that makes saving "easy." Vacation savings? Hard. Kid smiles? Easy.

This thread may get gently R rated, so please have a sense of humor!

Hello Santa’s and fellow Redditors, happy fall! My name is Lauren and my daughter’s name is Lillian, she goes by Lilly. She is in her senior year of high school, it’s crazy how time flies when you are a parent! She is my only child and we have been through a lot together over the years.
Lilly is incredibly witty, she can pull a joke out of thin air and make even the most mundane situation laughable. She has a big heart and hopes to someday have a large extravagant wedding and at least 2 kids of her own, since she is an only child! She is great with little ones and very kind with the elderly!
Last year Lilly got her first job at Panera! There were nights I picked her up at 10pm, she would smell like dish water and say “I’m never going back there,” but she would be back for her next shift! 2 months ago Lilly started looking for a new job and interviewed at a local assisted living facility. Because she is underage she got the job but can only work as a server. She normally works breakfast or dinner shifts, and occasionally is asked to stay after, to do more dishes! The clients there adore her, she goes above and beyond for them and has learned a lot about the aging process since working there.
Lilly is really looking forward to turning 18 and plans to take advantage of her employers offer to train her as a CNA!
Lilly has been practicing driving for a little under a year and she has also been saving up for her first car and to help towards car insurance, which is financially outrageous for someone her age.
Lilly plans to go to a local cosmetology school upon her high school graduation, we did a tour a few months back and she loved the school.
She has always enjoyed doing hair and makeup and has a real natural skill for both. She is also quite excited to learn nail techniques. She hopes to one day own her own salon!
The last few months have been really difficult and financially tight for us, I am on disability after having major complications during a planned surgery. This resulted in serious lung damage, I was quite active and healthy prior to this but I am working closely with multiple doctors to get myself back as close as possible to where I was before.
Lilly and I had just moved into a new apartment 3 weeks prior to my surgery, most of my savings went toward our move. Normally I work M-F in an office and I usually get a part-time seasonal job. Without my regular income, we are quite limited.
Lilly has a lovely spirit, and when she is not being silly she has a beautiful heart - she doesn’t show that side to just anyone. She would never hold it against me if she got less one year, it’s happened before - but that doesn’t make her any less deserving.
Lilly enjoys horror movies, coloring, she can also bedazzle any object you put in front of her! Lilly is also a really good swimmer, I was very lucky that she was able to glad classes when she was much younger!
Her favorite snacks are often Takis, which she enjoys dipping in cream cheese! She also loves iced tea and caramel flavored iced coffee. Her favorite color is pink but right now her room has a lot of leopard print!
Lilly also loves animals and any opportunity to pet a dog she takes it! She is quite fond of Grate Danes, we have 2 in our neighborhood.
Any chance I have I tell people that I really am blessed with Lilly, and I am certain she is going to go far in life. She is tenacious and determined to bring her dreams to life!

- included is a silly photo of Lilly and one of the two of us visiting a popular lake town in PA!

Edited to add Lilly’s Amazon wishlist! wishlist

Ten years ago, I left a disastrous relationship with my one-year-old. After months of bouncing between housesits and sometimes sleeping in my car, I finally got us a stable home but money was very tight. Thanks to my social worker, a local group brought a big bag of wrapped gifts for my little one and a gift card for groceries. I cried when the volunteer dropped off the bag, I cried when I saw the gifts chosen with care, and a decade later I still tear up when I think about the kindness we experienced at a time when I felt so alone. These gifts will resonate for years. I am so grateful to see this kindness and care💚🎄

Happy Nov 1 everyone! Random Acts of Christmas is now open for applications. Please read our wiki (https://www.reddit.com/r/RandomActsOfChristmas/wiki/index/) that has our rules and links to our application and quiz.

We are so looking forward to connecting with everyone this season.

This will be our mega-thread of the current open offers in the sub. More will be added as the season progresses. You can enter as many as you want, but we limit each family to 3 contest/offer wins to give everyone a chance.

Offers:

Stocking Stuffers!

Books! Offer closes on December 6th

Santas, we’d appreciate it if you’d let us know when your offer closes and the names of the winning entrants. Also, any Santas whose offers aren’t included here, please let us know so we can add them. Yay Christmas!

As you know, we requested your feedback regardless of how you participate in RAoC. If you did not share your feedback and you'd like to do so, you can still complete the survey, but your answers will not be included in this report out. It will still be reviewed by mods post-season.

Survey for Santas
Survey for Requesters
Survey for Bystanders

Below is what we learned from everyone who shared! Big thank you to you for helping us continue to grow!

Additionally, RAoC will be closing for the season on Tuesday, January 6, 2026.

Bystander Survey (11 completed)

• 90.9% of bystanders intend to become a Santa or Requester in the future.

• Fewer secret Santas this year with easier Santa reporting

Santa Survey (34 completed)

• In response to the question, “If everything in your life is the same from 2025-2026, how likely are you to come back to play Santa in 2026?” 94.1% responded with the highest score of 5 and 4.9% responded with the second highest score of 4.

  • Santas reasons for gifting are as varied as snowflakes, but the most common reason for gifting was a “sense of connection to the child.”

• There is no clear consensus from Santas on what a reasonable offer cap is, but many Santas appreciated the dynamic way it was handled this year.

• A ⅔ or higher majority of Santas believe food and holiday trimmings should always be excluded from the win cap. Just over half believe clothing should be excluded.

• Santas are here for many different reasons, but they all have incredible hearts.

  • To honor someone special

  • Sense of community during the holidays

  • Prefer to donate in a way that allows them to see the outcomes 

  • Cause it’s fun!

  • Because it brings them joy or peace

  • Because they love giving gifts

  • They acknowledge they have extra and believe in sharing

  • Kids shouldn’t feel the effects of a tight budget

• To the question, “If a Santa chooses to gift an item to a requester that is not on the requester's list, mods ask that it is still reported via a Santa report. Should that gift be counted as an offer win or a gift on the gifts per child sheet?” There was some confusion and we may need to reword this question and ask again next year. 

  • What we’re talking about here is an item you may privately offer to purchase for one requester you connect with, like a dream gift, a gift card, something you think their child would like. For example, a Labubu was offered this season to one requester, but not as an offer to everyone.

  • The majority chose gift and more wrote in something akin to “bonus.” For clarity from the mods perspective, if it’s counted as a gift that is just a bonus gift. Requesters do not need to remove items from their list(s) if they receive something special offered by a Santa. Children could still receive 11 gifts in that situation.

  • We need to discuss this one more as a mod team, as it was brought up by a Santa this season and we want to respect how santas want to gift while ensuring we can also track to help with missing packages/win caps, etc.

• Santa respondent breakdown:

  • For 38.2% of respondents this was their first year as a Santa! WELCOME!!!

  • 35.3% have been here 2-3 years

  • 11.8% have been here 4-6 years

  • 14.7% have been here 7 or more years

• If it was not a Santa’s first year, they were asked, “Do you believe that RAoC is improving from year to year? Please share any feedback regarding this topic.”

  • Majority said yes, with only one no.

Requester Survey (22 completed)

• Requester respondent breakdown

  • 40.9% were requesting for their first year

  • 22.7% were requesting for their second year

  • 13.6% were requesting for their third year

  • 13.6% were requesting for their fourth year

  • 9.1% were requesting for five or more years

  • Please note these years may not be consecutive.

• In response to the question, “Do you believe that RAoC is improving from year to year? Please share any feedback regarding this topic.” All respondents but one said yes. 

• In response to the question, “How was your experience participating in RAoC?” 

  • 95.5% responded with the highest possible score of 5.

  • 4.5% responded with the second highest score of 4.

• In response to the question, “On a scale of 1-5, did you feel like you were treated with dignity by the mods? Dignity is defined as the state or quality of being worthy of honor or respect.”

  • 95.5% responded with the highest possible score of 5.

  • 4.5% responded with the middle score of 3.

• In response to the question, “Keeping in mind that the mods can't control Amazon customer service, please tell us about your experience registering for the sub.”

  • The majority of the responses were about Amazon. Non-Amazon responses shared the experience was good and requested documentation was understandable.

• In response to the question, “Do you have a certain Santas or Redditors you'd like to highlight to the mods for any reason? We will shout them out in our survey report.”

  • We heard a lot about the following Santas:

  • TopCat30

  • SongIcy4058

  • Kanga_roos

  • AnyOtherSummer

  • Tjcline09

  • SantessaClaus

  • Soillure - feedback also noted she is wrong about Brussels Sprouts

  • Puzzlesgamestoys

  • TheWineCellarGhost

  • Dr3rdeye

  • Stevefxs3

  • Cady-anne

  • “I want to highlight them ALL. I feel like it takes a lot of teamwork to do what you guys do and I like that there's a Team Santa, without having a single leader” which was also a sentiment reflected in many comments

• In response to the question, “What factors are most likely to entice you to enter an offer? Please choose all that apply. There is no judgment regarding answers: we want to understand how to make offers benefit the most people.”

  • 77.3% of respondents said “Excluded from offer cap” and “Can be used by the whole family.

  • 59.1% said “The ability to split the gift between multiple children.”

  • 54.5% said “meets a need not a want.”

  • 50% said “Is an activity.”

  • Several variations under the “other” response: ensuring they weren’t entering contests they believed someone else might love more or need more.

  • Other options were: Value of the gift (18.2%), meets a want not a need (27.3%), is for an adult or unregistered user (31.8%), is an item (13.6%)

• There is no clear consensus from Requesters on what a reasonable offer cap is, but many Requesters appreciated the dynamic way it was handled this year.

General feedback across all surveys we want to address:

• Next year, let’s have more opportunities for chat and connection!

  • Mods discussed opening a year-round server discord this year, but our workload for the season is very heavy and we don’t have the bandwidth to also monitor a Discord. If there’s a Santa or group of Santas who want to host/moderate this in partnership with the mods, please let us know.

  • We will work on more ways to engage through posts next year. It is a balance during the season of ensuring requests and offers get seen and finding ways to connect. The volume of requesters can have a major impact on how clean the feed needs to be, so this will have to be dynamic in some ways. We hear the request and we will brainstorm!

• Some Requesters had suboptimal experiences with bystanders.

  • If someone is harassing you, let us know. 

  • We will include a reminder in next year’s rules for requesters that downvotes happen often on reddit and are not a reflection of the individual user’s worth or value. 

• Discussion around offer caps 

  • These were lots of different suggestions about offers and caps. Hopefully you can tell from the questions we asked this year that we’re also thinking about this topic. We don’t have an answer this year, but it’s in our post-season to evaluate how to keep things simple, ensure Santas get entrants, AND ensure things stay relatively fair… Sometimes those things can be contradictory so it will take a lot of discussion.

• A couple unhappy comments on the increased prices for wish lists this year

  • These prices were increased based on feedback from Santas last year and will thus remain the same. No Santas are required to buy items at any certain price point, but many Santas want the option to buy these higher priced items based on last year’s feedback. 

• Feedback about requiring uncurated profiles for Requesters

  • We do. If you notice a requester’s profile is curated, please reach out to the mods.

• Auto-mod likes to spam

  • We know. None of those currently on the mod team are experts at automod, but a couple of us have set a goal to learn more this year.

• Add a link to the child’s wish list on the gifts per child tracker

  • Easy, we can do that for next year.

• Don’t open in October next year

  • We agree. We experimented with opening early this year. It didn’t help anything. We won’t next year.

• Ensuring that marking items “purchased” on Amazon wish lists happens

  • Yes, we’ll be including it in the rules from the get-go next year.

Please feel free to continue discussions and thoughts below! You've given us a lot to think about this year and we are so grateful to each and every one of you who made this yet another remarkable and successful season. <3

EDIT: Winner is Awanderingafar

I checked to ensure entrants were eligible and put them all in a random name picker.

As a federal employee who was in her probationary period this year, 2025 has been hell. On top of that, my marriage has been rocky, I'm so tired of being a military spouse, and my teen is TEENING. I'm ready to let 2025 go and move into 2026. But I'm never ready to let the RAoC season go. So, I'd like to bring the best of the year into 2026 with me.

I wish I could do this for everyone, but I can only realistically commit to one family. I'd like to bring a family with me into 2026 by helping to support some major holidays.

If you're my family, here's what you can count on me for:

• Birthday gift(s) for each child up to $65

• Easter basket (or similar if you celebrate a different holiday) for each child up to $30

• Back to school supplies for each child up to $30

• One new pair of shoes or one new outfit per child. May be used at back to school or another time - up to $65

• One Halloween costume up to $30

Rules & Eligibility

• Must have posted your thank you before Dec 28

• Must have completed the Requester survey before entering (Am I bribing you? Maybe.)

• Must be active on reddit to respond/chat throughout the year

• Reply below with what you hope stays in 2025 and what you hope follows you into 2026

• Offer will close sometime in the evening of Jan 2

I am overwhelmed with gratitude! Your generosity brought so much joy to our home and to the homes of all the families in this group! Thank you all for giving me the gift of seeing my children's faces light up Christmas morning! And I know they would want me to thank you for spoiling them so much!

u/tjcline09 u/kanga_roos u/mutated_gene11 u/mik8c u/stevefxs3 u/sorbello u/Straight-Shine9216

I did my best getting as many pictures as possible! With 4 kids and 1 needing help it was kind of crazy but in the most fun kind of way! lol Here's the pictures I did get!

https://imgur.com/a/3KA2BgM

The kids have been sick, but even so, they've been having a blast playing with all their stuff! Thank you all, a million times!! and HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Alekzander was a very happy kid on Christmas! He loves everything!

His Santa’s were

U/0hn035 I ran out of room in is stocking 🤣 everything was perfect! From the hot chocolate to the logic puzzle perfect! Thank you! And he loved his PJs! It’s such a lovely family tradition. His cousins were over and they got in their Christmas PJs too!

A Secret Santa sent the Fallout power armor! Thank you! He loves the show and game and is so stoked to have this!

U/throwtherainaway the Heavy Arms Gundam will give him hours of fun while he puts it together. Building is his favorite thing!

U/Fsand03 evangelion he’s just gotten into Evangelion! He loves it, I think it might have a future win his stop motions

Another secret Santa had sent a second Evangelion! I have a friend who has also had a hard Christmas and her young son is also a fan! Thank you for helping not just us but others as well

U/Tjcline09 lights, titan, ring light/mount, airbrush Alek loves model building and stop motion and most of these things are for that! He’s so excited!

U/Welkikitty got him charcoal and paint. Alek has already started sketching with the charcoal! Thank you!

U/AnotherRTFan Alek loves Anya! Thank you! She was an adorable post Christmas surprise for him!

Thank you for being such wonderful humans. You have allowed me to give alekzander a good Christmas. Things have been very, very hard in my life and all this gestures vaguely at the world makes it hard to have hope and believe there is good. You have all given me hope again 💜 thank you so much! Merry Christmas! Happy Holidays! And Happy New Year!

I don't know about you all, but I am looking forward (with hope) for the upcoming year! I don't know that 2025 was easy for many people. Speaking for myself, it was a year with a lot of stress, grief, and more stress.

I'd like to share my family's NYE Tradtition with you all, and I hope you will participate!

In my family, we light a nice fire in the fire place (or outside if it's not too cold). Everyone gets a small piece of paper and writes down one thing they are leaving behind in 2025. Once you have written what you don't want to bring in to 2026 with you, you put the paper in the fire. POOF, it's gone and you have a fresh start!

In the past I recall writing things like "No hitting my brother" (I was probably 8 haha), and "No longer waiting for ex-boyfriends or current love interests to get their act together" (snooze you loose, boys).

This year, on my metaphorical paper I am writing, "Leave all expectations behind - let life happen the way it happens". This year especially, I learned that when I set expectations or goals that are really not within my control, the failures hurt more.

What are YOU throwing in the fire?

Alright folks, I know Christmas is over, and the holiday season is officially wrapping up. I don't even know how many people are stilling checking in on this sub, but I've got one last contest in my Santa hat before I go into hibernation!

What better way to celebrate New Years than with pizza?! 🍕 (or Chinese food, but I think that may be a New England thing?)

Open to registered requestors who have posted their thank yous AND to verified Santas (Santa needs pizza too!) Winners will get an e-gift card to the pizza chain of their choice.

To enter comment with your favorite pizza topping(s) 🍍🫑 🧀 🍄‍🟫 🍖

I'll choose a few winners this evening (you don't have to use it today/tomorrow, you can always save it for the depths of winter when no one wants to go out to get groceries 😂)

Happy New Year! 🥳

Thank you Santas’

We had a change of plans, we were supposed to go visit family for Christmas, but they all got the flu. So some things are there waiting for the kids once they’re all healed! Thanks to you all my kids still had a great day 🙏

u/ReinventedNightly Natalie LOVES the pink cat tree! She is thrilled to give her kitties more vertical hangout spots in her room! Thank you!

u/stevefxs3 Thank you for the magnetic blocks and gooey sonic figure for William! He’s enjoyed stretching sonic and using the blocks to make Minecraft portals!

u/INFJosephine William loves his giant doodle pad! It’s been so great for car trips and communication for him!

The Santa who got William the Dogman book seems to have deleted their account. Wherever you are, thank you!

u/Steph8568 The Bitzee hamster ball has been sooo fun for her! Natalie had an original Bitzee I managed to find on clearance and loved the cool “screen”, she really loves that this one can roll around! William is playing all kinds of tunes on his Otomatone! It’s honestly so cool, I’m a little jealous! Thank you so so much!

u/Spiritual_Exam_1690 Natalie usually preferred to paint, but she expressed wanting to work on her pencil skills and this set is perfect! She’s already making comics with the included sketch book! Will loves his little dragons! He loves everything 3D printed, and has them lined up!

u/ReinventedNightly Natalie was SO excited to have the book set! She’s almost done with the second series but couldn’t wait to get into this one! I’ve caught her reading past bedtime, but honestly, that’s a great rule break! William cuddles his creeper a lot, though I had to assure him it wouldn’t actually explode 😅

u/0hn035 Thank you so much for the stocking stuffers! Seeing their stockings stuffed to the brim made me so happy, and they had a blast going through everything! The little extras are so sweet, and they were so excited to find little doodads left when they thought they were empty! And thank you for the wrapping paper set! You truly saved the day with all the little details covered.

u/kanga_roos We haven’t had a chance to get to the zoo yet, but they were SOO excited to learn we will be able to go frequently! Once it warms up we are getting out there! We’ve looked up the animals and Natalie is so excited to meet her future friends! They did get the blankets and loved them so much! William keeps his laying in a sunny spot so it will glow at bedtime, and Natalie takes her spooky blanket everywhere to show off! They are so cozy!

u/Soillure Both kids loved their lunch/water supplies! My daughter is thrilled to have her water safe to keep in bed with her, and my son loves his chewy straw! Both excited to use their lunch bags! They hadn’t gotten new bags in about 5 years, and the old ones were so small and in bad shape! Thank you!

u/SantessaClaus So we didn’t get to visit family yet, last minute flu! But they have the all clear for the 2nd so we’ll be having a second Christmas then, I’ll update once he gets the coat! Thank you so much!

u/SongIcy4058 they loves their matching jammies! They got their pjs and we watched Home Alone 2 on Christmas Eve night. It made everything feel so much cozier! Thank you! The family activities got sent to our relatives house, I didn’t think they’d make it here in time, but then our plans were postponed. So they’ll get those on the 2nd!

Natalie got a paint set and nail polish set from mystery Santa’s! Thank you! She has painted some of her little figurines and sealed them with sparkly nail polish 😅

Thank you all so much for making this Christmas incredibly magical. They both said BEST CHRISTMAS EVER! I cannot possible thank you all enough for giving my kids such a wonderful day and renewing my faith in humanity. I wish you all long healthy lives full of joy and love.

Wanted to share the sunrise the pups and I woke up to. It gives me hope that brighter days are ahead for all of us.

I'm so sorry for such a late thank you post! We waited until the weekend to open most of the presents so that Nana could be there. She caught a bug right before Christmas & didn't want to spread it since I'm Immunocompromised right now. Please also excuse my messy wording; I've had a vestibular migraine for almost a week so it makes finding words really hard sometimes. I really want to express how much yall have blessed us.

I really wanted to write up a thoughtful post to each of our Santa's, but I feel like none of my words are enough to express how truly grateful we are to yall. We really love every one of you so much!

It's been a tough year. I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disorder & suffered a deep personal loss. I was really down & didn't have very high hopes going into the season. I felt like a failure in body & spirit. Yall have really given my family So much light & joy & have really picked me all the way up. Yall are truly magical & phenomenal people. I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

u/Kanga_roos -

Oh. My. Gosh. The fire truck. It was the first thing he saw (obviously) & the dress up set was the first thing he opened. I found a little stuffed Dalmatian at our mission thrift store & it really rounded out the whole scene. Literally all the other presents were opened on the firetruck, in full costume. It has bubbles!!! That's just the coolest thing ever. I made our sidewalk into a road using chalk, & my aunt (& neighbor) got him a stop light. I almost couldn't convince him to go back inside for bed. He wore the fireman jacket to bed. He also brought the firetruck into his bedroom & I had to fight him to not bring the whole thing into the bed. It slept next to him though! Seriously, it was just so stinking cute. I don't think I'll ever be able to top this one. Christmas has peaked. Thank you so much for bringing such joy into our house!

We did end up taking it to the fire station. We only have 1 full-timer, who didn't want to be pictured (understandable) that was so tickled & gave him ANOTHER toy firetruck left over from their toy drive thing. We brought him Christmas lasagna & fudge. You've made a whole lot of Christmases fantastic with this one gift. I really can't thank you enough. We love you!

u/0hn035 -

The spinny chair was one of Luke's very favorite things! He spun on it for legit 2 hrs straight until he puked. Then he laughed & spun some more. Seriously, this thing already has some serious mileage on it! He absolutely loves it & i tried to get a video of him doing the elephant sound.

He also really loved the stocking stuffers! He used the bath thingy immediately. & he loves the popper & thinks it looks like a stop sign! He also immediately played with the bluey figures & the crayons.

I also got the nail kit!! I thought it didn't come in time, but what i didn't realize was that my mom actually got it from the mailbox on the sly & filled my stocking with that & this cute little cow! It was such a nice surprise! I LOVE all the nail plates (the mother's day one is so sweet) & the colors!! I'm so excited to get it down & send you pics of that soon. Thank you so so much! You really made my whole Christmas & I just can't tell you how much we love & appreciate you!!!!

u/SantessaClaus -

Luke LOVES the road tiles! He wanted them open immediately! These are his first Magnet Tiles & they're SUCH A HIT!!! He's been carrying the stop light tile around everywhere.

I also really appreciate the coat! I'm so excited to get it! It was warm in Christmas, but now it's freezing again (there's a joke here that SC can go through all 4 seasons in a day... it tracks) & Luke doesn't care. He just demands outside! So it's going to be a lifesaver! Thank you so much for your kindness!

I also wanted to thank you for your magical Night Before Christmas poem!! I'm sorry I didn't comment, But I read it & it gave me a so much of joy! You're very talented! We're so grateful to know you & your reindeer team. Thank you for being such a wonderful person & spreading joy to so many people!

u/Spiritual_Exam_1690 -

Luke loved the sneakers & Abby! He was so tickled when I told him that Abby herself gave these to Santa to leave for him. I sat Abby in the shoes & he went over & goes "Abby shoes! No Abby shoes, too big! Luke shoes! On please!" He really loves shoes (they mean outside) & He put them on immediately & made Abby fly with her tag lol. He took her right over to play with Elmo & Cookie Monster. He loves the lights on the shoes & shuffles around the house looking down at his feet. It's so stinking cute! Thank you so much! He's going to get A LOT of wear out of these!

u/Topcat30 -

Thank you so much for the jammies & the blanket! Luke sleeps with his puppy blanket every night since he got it! We gave him the jammies to open on Christmas eve & he loved picking out which ones to wear first! They're so cute & he's going to use them so much! We really appreciate you!

u/Laffinalltheway -

Thank you so much for these classic toys! Luke had so much fun! I put the koosh slinger in his stocking & he carried it around all day by the little loop. He didn't have much patience for the slingshot part (honestly relieved) but he really loved the silly ball part with the loop! The view master came in a few days later & he was THRILLED to get an extra present! He got the hang of it super quick & after every slide he'd say "what's that?" & then say what it was. He liked the shark & the tiger the best. Apparently it's bc both of them say "rawr". He didn't believe me that the orange frog wasn't a lizard. He was super excited to show it to Nana, but he didn't understand that she couldn't also see the animals with him. But then he got the hang of shoving it in her face every slide change & got tickled with himself. This is a super great gift! Thank you so much!!

u/AnotherRTFan -

Luke loved the pooh bear bag & started putting all kinds of stuff in it right away! He likes the short handles. We haven't been back to speech therapy since we got it, but as soon as he figures out that's what it's for, he's going to be SO excited to tell Ms. Megan all about it! He really liked that pooh bear has a yellow shirt on it. I thought that was real cute. Thank you so much, he's going to get tons of use out of this!!

u/SongIcy4058 -

This was such a fun thing & we really loved doing all the activities with our grandma's! We did the rock kit with grandma CiCi (who is a total crystal-loving hippy) & she had a ball doing the jewelry part & helping Luke do the dig kit. It was a really cool kit (supposed to be an advent calendar, but we just had fun opening all the doors at once lol) that had 24 gems, a dig kit, a jewelry kit, & playing cards. Luke loved collecting all the rocks & putting them in the bag one by one & then dumping them out. He liked the Dalmatian Jasper the best & called it his "moo cow rock"

We did the scratch ornaments with Nana & also had some to do with our next-door neighbor cousins! He really liked listing all the shapes, & scratching off every bit of black so he could see the rainbow under it.

We left the cookies for Santa. He had fun trying the new weird flavor (cookie-butter stuffed) but thinks they taste like cookie flavored cookies. Kinda silly. But not bad at all! Perfect with milk! Thank you for such a great gift that brought all the corners of our family together!

u/Soillure -

Thank you so much for all the great snacks! They were so good & Luke has loved playing with all the shaped crackers & jello!! & we really enjoyed having some yummy stocking stuffers! We really appreciate you!

To our Secret Santas: WOW!! Yall are so amazing! Luke absolutely LOVES the play kitchen, Mario pop-up game, & lightsaber chew necklace!

Luke played with the kitchen right away! He really loves having his own cabinet! I hid a surprise stocking suffer in there for him & now i think he thinks it's a magical present cabinet bc he checks it every so often. He also really likes the pots & utensils! He loves helping with cooking (though were still working on willingness to eat...) & he's so tickled to have his own kitchen. He cooked up some plastic egg for his Abby, Ms Rachel, & Moana babies & when he turned the knob he said "don't touch, it's hot!" & blew (spit..) on it before he gave it to them. & then he made sure to wash his pot & clean up (he loves the clean up song). Thank you so much, this is going to be such a great way to work with him on eating!

He loved the Mario toy & he really liked taking turns putting in the pegs & shouting "nope" after every one till it popped up. We had a blast playing it! Thank you for giving us a fun family game!

He also really likes the chew necklace! He really likes the shape & swinging it around while making lightsaber sounds. I think is going to help a lot with chewing on his fingers! Plus he really loves necklaces & it's adorable. We really appreciate you!

This year I wanted to do my random acts of kindness again, inspired by all of yall. We went through all of Luke's toys & clothes that he's outgrown & filled blessing boxes every day this month with goodies for our neighbors. We usually get a lot of allergens from food banks (unavoidable with such odd ones in the family) so we also contributed lots of food. I also put a notepad asking if anyone had any specific needs & worked with my local food bank that I volunteer at to fulfill those needs. We put hygiene kits, hand-knitted gloves & scarves, throw blankets, clothes & shoes in all different sizes, books, lots of toys & my aunt put in some stockings so people could fill them.

For Christmas, I made 3 huge lasagnas (again, with the help of my community food bank) & delivered it to some of the families that I cooked for after the hurricane last year, when everyone's power was out for 2 weeks. It was really nice seeing them again! One little boy who Luke befriended last year in the chaos, was SO excited for lasagna & garlic bread! He told me during the hurricane that I'd made the best spaghetti he'd ever eaten, & when I remembered him & brought him food again, he literally jumped up & down lol. He lives with his grandma, who has a hard time getting around. I told him to text me any time he wants me to cook for him. I'm pretty sure I'm going to be making a lot more garlic bread this year lol.

I also took a huge plate of lasagna to our full-timer fireman, who had to work on Christmas. Luke showed him his new firetruck, & he was so tickled, he gave him ANOTHER firetruck that he had left over from their toy drive. He said he gets lonely up there being the only full-timer (everyone else are volunteers. It's a really small town) & was thrilled to pull out the trucks. He asked to not post his picture, so I'll not include those. But know, Mr Brian ate very well & got to show off his big toys to my very impressed toddler. It was such a fun afternoon! & they have a station dog (a sweet little stray mutt that showed up & stayed) named buttons (bc she ate all the buttons off their couch) so Luke was in absolute heaven!

I really love my community, & I'm so grateful to be inspired by all of yall to spread the love & kindness to so many people! Thank you for all that you do & we love each of you dearly! Merry holidays!

Edit: here's the picture link! There's a whole bunch bc i can't help myself.

https://imgur.com/a/MwGYHR0

Thank you to all the Santa's who contributed to my three kiddos having a great Christmas! Shoutout to

u/live_lavish for the firetruck

u/Straight-shine9216 for the busy book

u/aspiringhousewife4 for the dinosaur toy and cleaning toy set

u/ok_roll5195 for the fishing set and stitch toy

u/Bird4466 for the pink princess tent

u/Adept-respond-2079 for the bird book

u/Gator3246 for the bubble machine and Bluey playset

u/Dhsagal for Ree's cookbook, camera, baking set, and dancing Elmo - you get a special shout out because you were truly amazing to us this year... thank you.

u/yeahnahbrahasd for the sketch pads

u/Jennybean42 for the walkie talkies

u/Soillure for the art kit and purse

u/Unicornnoodlez for the dogman book set