Michael Bates: October 2019 Archives

Santa's calendar is filling up! There are still some opportunities available for you to have Santa Claus at your Christmas parties, public events, or photo sessions.

Santa's public appearances and events often have opportunities for photos -- some are take-your-own, some with professional photographers.

Santa will once again be at Philbrook Museum, every Friday and Saturday evening from November 29 through December 28, plus Santa will be spending Christmas eve at Philbrook. All of Santa's Philbrook appearances will run from 6 pm to 9 pm, in his illuminated log cabin in the gardens at Philbrook, part of Philbrook's Festival Nights. This is a ticketed event, and admission is limited.

On Friday, November 22, from 6:30 to 8:30, Santa will be at the Frosted Artisan Cake Studio at 522 W. Will Rogers Blvd. in downtown Claremore. Come see Santa and shop for delicious and beautifully decorated cakes, cupcakes, cookies, and other treats.

On Sunday, November 24, from 3 to 5, come see Santa and shop for fun and educational Christmas gifts at Learning Express Toys of Tulsa in the Vineyard on Memorial, 7891 E. 108th Street, near 111th and Memorial in south Tulsa (near north Bixby).

On Thursday, December 12, from 10:00 am to 11:30 am, Santa will be spending time at the First Baptist Church Tulsa's Memory Cafeé. The church's entrance is on Detroit Ave. between 4th and 5th Streets in downtown Tulsa.

Santa has limited availability for a few more parties and events, but the calendar will fill quickly over the course of the next few weeks. If you'd like to book Santa, contact him ASAP via elf mail at Santa_Tulsa@yahoo.com

Here are some of the places you'll be able to find him around Tulsa this year.

NOTE: Events in italics are private or open only to members and guests.

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.