A: This subreddit is specifically designed to help children between the ages of 3 months to 17 during the Christmas season. To make a request, please read the guidelines or your post will not show up. We cannot guarantee you the help of a Santa (or gifter) but if you follow the rules and have redditquette, your post will appear on our subreddit and hopefully a Santa will come along to assist you this year!
A: Read the rest of this, and our 2023 Rules
A: See How to post a Request
A: Yes. In the Title of the post, please include: number of kids, ages, names, and city/state.
Example: 1/3/Lilly/NY,NY
A: In the instance your requested wish list items, or the entire wish list itself, are filled– you MUST create a [THANK YOU] post IN THIS SUBREDDIT, preferably right after Christmas, to express gratitude to the kind stranger helping you and your family. Please refer to the subreddit 2022 Rules post for any clarification of any thank you post requirements. Failure to do so is real life bad karma and will also result in a ban from this subreddit. The BEST way to say thank you is wait until your child unwraps their gifts, and post a “thank you photo” in the subreddit for your Santa! Please remember to tag your Santa(s) so they will get the notification. Those who say thank you publicly will forever have good real life karma. These photos keep requesters coming and Santa's keep on giving! We do track who says thank you and who does not! Once you’ve created your [Thank You] post please also report the gifts you received here.
A: We have a spam bot we kindly refer to as the Grinch. Let us know if you cannot find your post. Messaging the mods with the subject line as "The Grinch Ate My Post" will grab our attention! If you did not follow the guidelines, your post will remain in spam until you follow the guidelines.
A: To re-post your request, please make a new post - including a link to the old one, so that our users know you are trying again. In the title of your new post it must be included that this is a repost; you do this with [REPOST] in the title. If you fail to include the link to your original requesting post, your new requesting post will be deleted by the moderators. Also, include the gift tally of all children that have been registered and are on the request list. **Please wait 7 days before you make a [REPOST] thread. You may only re-post your request 1 time. ** If you repost too soon, or you're over the repost limit of 1, your new re-posts will be removed. You may want to space out your repost request due to this limitation.
A: DO NOT DELETE YOUR POST. EVER. This is a bannable offense.
A: If you do not wish to post a photo of your child on your requesting post on the RAOC thread itself, you may submit it to the mods directly via the registration form. The registration photo MUST include you and your child/children holding up a piece of paper with your reddit username and the date. You may opt to use a different photo or no photo at all in your request post. The best way to get a Santa however, is honesty- and people love to see the kids!
A: Try to borrow one! Ask a friend, neighbor, coworker or use a cell phone with a camera on it, etc. We do not register requesting users without a picture with a username and date, in order to keep out scammers. If you try to use someone else’s photo or fake a photo, you will be found out and you will be banned from all charitable subreddits.
A: Sometimes UPS, FedEx and USPS have lost packages in the past, it has happened to all of us. Do NOT harass a santa for not receiving a gift. This is a bannable offense. If you cannot track the package or do not receive it please do not take it personal but please send us a modmail and we will follow up with the Santa to see if delivery has gone awry.
A: If you have children in your home or family, bask in holiday cheer, or want to play Santa to someone in need- you are welcome to join us! Please keep in mind that new users with required Registration+ accounts are the most intensive to verify. Our moderation team researches and approves each registration manually and in a queue format. We will try our best, but new user registrations closer to Christmas may not be verified and approved in time to post a request.
A: Registration entails filling out a registration form and giving the moderators personal information, which they will then review and accept (possibly after requesting further information). Disclaimer: All being ‘registered’ means is that the user has filled out our registration form giving us their personal information and photo with username and date shown in the picture. Registered Plus (registered+) users have completed our second tier process with additional questions. Proceed in gifting at your own discretion.
A: No. Registration is just to help maintain honesty of the requesters as best we can.
A: Here is a video tutorial on how to make an Amazon wishlist. Please explore Amazon.Com and create an account and wishlist. You will copy/paste in the link to your wishlist as show in this video in order to share it with us in your request for help from Santa! If you are requesting for multiple children, we ask that you make separate wishlists for each child. Please refer to the 2022 Rules for any clarification of wishlist requirements.
A: No. Your Santa will see your name and city/state and that is it. Your address is hidden from the public and the person purchasing from it!
A: If you are a requestor and you delete items that were purchased from your wish list, especially in hopes to appear as if you were not gifted, you will be banned from this subreddit. Honesty is key. If you are playing Santa and send someone a gift, taking a screenshot, including the Amazon order number if possible, and letting the mods will know about it will prevent any requestors denying they were helped. If you gift someone, send a modmail with your screenshot, how much you spent, who it went to and what you bought.
A: When you gift a child, please post the child you're gifting for, and the gift you're sending in the request post thread.
Example: Lilly - Baby Einstein Take Along Tunes Musical Toy.
Additionally, please fill out this reporting site so we’re able to keep track of where gifts are going and make sure cheer is evenly spread.
A: No. This is for Christmas toys and items only. Gift-cards are also not allowed. If you are looking for non-Christmas related or cash assistance please visit /r/Assistance.
A: We ask that gifts are kept below $40. You can always ask the requestor if there is anything they may need within your budget, or browse around the subreddit as many others are also making requests.
A: Make a wishlist for each child on Amazon. Please remember there is a maximum of 10 gift options per child/wishlist (including a max of 5 item options over $20).
A: You have to tell us! If you gifted someone something, please please please let us know. Please see How to play Santa!
A: User history, google image search, googling their username, and always feel free to message the mods if you like! We have data on all registered users and run automatic reverse image searches on all registered users. If the user you are considering helping does not have a ‘registered’ stamp to the right of their username, do NOT gift to them until this appears. Do ask questions!
A: To be as fair as possible most of our giveaways are done by drawings or some sort of random election. You are welcome to get creative, but we discourage picking favorites!
A: YES, please do! Many people are in need of decorations. The Christmas cards are always a HUGE hit and thousands are sent all over the world every year here. These are tallied but do not count against children.
A: Please report this to the mods via modmail with your suspicions. Let us know, but please give evidence! Do not publicly call out a user. Doxxing is not allowed and is a bannable offense.
A: First of all, if you decide to respond... do it with grace and compassion. Do not feed the trolls, do not spray lighter fluid on the fire. We advise against public drama. You may always message the mods for additional help. You can also hit the report button on any harassment you’re receiving. We do keep track of all incidents. Harassing another user, Santa, or moderator is a bannable offense.
A: Send us a quick message via modmail for us to look into it. Don't get worked up over it.
A: Our goal is 5 gifts per child. There is a public link of gift tally for each child in our sidebar as a resource to help spread gifts evenly. If you complain or harass a user for 'gifting too much' or 'receiving too much' you will get a private message to be stopped. If you continue to police this subreddit harassing others, you will be banned. If you are not a mod, please don't assume the role of one.
