For the rest of the year, we’re revisiting columns from our long-running series “I’ve Always Wondered.” Each week, Marketplace’s Janet Nguyen tackles one of your questions about money, business or the economy — no matter how big or small. 

Ron Kinyanjui asks:

What do post offices do when they receive letters to Santa Claus? Where do the letters go?

Idaho resident Kelly Hardy left a job with Medicaid to become self-employed this year, which meant she didn’t have a lot of money to buy Christmas gifts for her 9-year-old daughter Zella. But last week, she found out that someone had purchased the gifts on her daughter’s wish list.

Zella had sent a letter to Santa Claus through the U.S. Postal Service’s Operation Santa program, which allows people to “adopt” letters posted on the USPS website and fulfill gift requests from children (and adults). 

“We really did need assistance this year, so I was just so overjoyed,” Hardy said. Not just because of the presents, but because of the kindness her family received from a stranger. 

“Somebody just decided to make a kid's Christmas wish list come true. It's just so touching,” Hardy said.

Zella’s presents included a Netflix gift card, toys for her dog Pepper, books, candy, Grinch plushies, and a blind Barbie doll. “Those Barbies that are unique like that are just very special to her,” Hardy said. 

Hardy, who used to work in the field of development disabilities, said she always took the time to teach Zella that “people have different abilities and different ways of accessing the world.” Her daughter also once had caretakers who also looked after people with disabilities, which may be why she appreciates dolls that are inclusive, Hardy said.  

About 49,000 letters were adopted this holiday season, up from almost 33,400 letters in 2024, according to a USPS spokesperson.

“In 2025, USPS Operation Santa saw an extraordinary surge in letters – nearly double what we received last year – which is both heartwarming and a reminder of how families across the U.S. could use a little extra holiday cheer this year,” the spokesperson said over email. 

But because of the high volume of letters, not everyone gets adopted. That’s why, this year, the Postal Service began encouraging people to adopt family letters, which allows them to fulfill the entire household’s requests all at once, the spokesperson said. 

A history of Operation Santa

Santa Claus started to become a prominent figure in American culture back in the 19th century. Reforms in the 19th century also made postage cheaper, allowing more people to send letters, said Christopher Shaw, a postal service historian and policy analyst  

At first, children would often stick their letters to St. Nick in the chimney. But by the 1890s, children started sending their letters through a place with less soot: The post office.

The postal service’s initial policy was to return them to the sender whenever possible, according to the USPS website.  But some clerks violated that policy, occasionally pooling together their money to help children in need. Postmasters would also give the letters to charities or wealthy benefactors, who helped fulfill requests.

In 1912, USPS launched the Operation Santa program, officially allowing local postmasters to read and respond to “Dear Santa” letters. By the 1940s, charitable organizations, corporations and everyday Americans were able to respond.

The Postal Service modernized the program in 2017 by launching a digital pilot in New York, where people could adopt letters online. The program expanded two years later, enabling anyone in the U.S. to peruse the website and adopt someone in need. 

“I think it's a wonderful tradition, and I'm glad that we're still doing it even as we do less communicating by traditional mail than we used to,” Shaw said. 

To participate in Operation Santa, you have to send your wish list to 123 Elf Road, located in the North Pole, by the beginning of December. However, you can write to Santa without requesting any gifts. 

People can also communicate with Kris Kringle by sending letters to the town of Santa Claus, Indiana, where “elves” at the Santa Claus Museum & Village have volunteered to write back.

“Never be ashamed to ask for help when you truly need it”

The expansion of the program means that someone on the East Coast can go to the Postal Service’s website and adopt a letter from someone on the other side of the country.

Sherry Derby, a 57-year-old resident of Tappahannock, Virginia, had been scrolling the Operation Santa site when she came across a letter from a woman who’s also named Sherry. 

This Sherry was from Washington, and she recently moved from a travel trailer to a small cabin, where she lives with her granddaughter, her two cats and her granddaughter’s Great Dane. Her wish list was filled with humble items: A cheese grater. Bathroom towels. Tools for the fireplace. New or used, it didn’t matter.

“In Sherry from Washington, I saw pieces of myself, but most importantly I saw pieces of my mother,” Derby said. 

Just like her mom, Sherry from Washington loves cats. And just like Sherry’s daughter, Derby loves dogs. Derby doesn’t know Sherry’s exact backstory. But reading between the lines, she could sense that Sherry was scrappy. 

“I grew up poor, but I didn’t know we were poor until I moved away from home. I saw my mother struggle to feed and clothe her four girls,” Derby said. 

Growing up, Derby’s dad worked at a sugar beet factory in Kansas, while her mother looked after the kids. When Derby’s mom had extra money at the end of the month, she’d usually buy paint, a sketchbook or a canvas. But once, she was able to purchase a pair of red shoes. Derby still remembers how happy she looked. 

“I wanted Sherry to have that moment of joy,” Derby said. 

Derby’s participation in Operation Santa comes at a time when she’s realized the importance of reaching out to others when you’re in need. 

“I was raised to never ask for help. Ever. Never ask someone what you can do for yourself — the family motto,” Derby said.

But when the COVID-19 lockdowns began, Derby started to feel isolated and depressed —  she had lost several friends and her two dogs.  Her son recommended contacting a therapist, so that’s what she did.  

Her new motto? “Never be ashamed to ask for help when you truly need it,” Derby said. “You'd be surprised how many people will reach out their hand to help you if you just ask.”

Being comfortable with accepting assistance is something that Kelly Hardy also struggled with. 

“I was always raised to be somebody that gives and not receives,” Hardy said. 

Someday she hopes she and her daughter will be able to participate in the program. 

“I feel like I got more of a gift through it than she did,” Hardy said. “It’s a gift to me to just know that something like this exists and that people support it.”

This newsletter is off the rest of the week, but you can still hear Marketplace wherever you listen. Also, this Friday our weekly newsletter will revisit some of our best interviews from the past year. Subscribe here so you don’t miss it, and keep an eye on your inbox next week for more from “I’ve Always Wondered!”