About Santa David Bates

Santa David Bates is a real-bearded Santa, a member of the International Brotherhood of Real Bearded Santas, and 2019 is his fifteenth Christmas season as a Santa.

David is a lifelong Oklahoman and has been a Tulsan since 1969. He is retired from Saint Francis Health System and previously worked for the Cities Service Companies. He has two children and five grandchildren. He is an active member of First Baptist Church in Tulsa.

His 2018 season was his busiest yet, with public appearances at Philbrook, Gilcrease Museum, Guthrie Green, the Gathering Place, and the Mayo Hotel. To book Santa David for your 2019 event, send an elf mail to Santa_Tulsa@yahoo.com

You can learn more about Santa from this 2010 Tulsa World feature story about Philbrook's Santa and the accompanying Q&A, this 2008 Urban Tulsa Weekly profile of Santa David Bates, a 2013 profile in Tulsa People, this 2014 Tulsa World story on grooming bushy beards, a 2015 Tulsa World interview by Scott Cherry, and in this tribute column by his son, Michael Bates.

On August 1, 2019, Santa David's beloved wife Sandy passed away. Sandy Bates was a longtime kindergarten teacher at Catoosa Elementary School and in retirement presented a weekly Storytime at the Catoosa library, taught English as a second language, and volunteered at the First Baptist Church Caring Center. She often appeared with David as Mrs. Claus, and she delighted in reading Christmas stories to children and leading them in Christmas crafts. She is greatly missed.