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Do You Love Santa and the Armed Forces? Classic Christmas Poem Gets Military Twist (Exclusive Look!)

Nov. 12, 2012 9:00am Liz Klimas

Since 1955, the North American Aerospace Defense (NORAD) Command has been tracking Santa Clause as he travels around the world on Christmas Eve — and it’s done so without system failure. But what would happen if Santa went missing? That’s exactly the premise for Michael Keane’s new children’s book — “The Night Santa Got Lost: How NORAD Saved Christmas“.

The Night Santa Got Lost: How NORAD Saved Christmas: New Childrens Book Combines

(Image: The Night Santa Got Lost: How NORAD Saved Christmas)

Although you might think combining Santa and soldiers in fatigues is the missing verse from “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer,” Keane said his book includes an important message about the military, patriotism and Christmas.

The basic plot is that NORAD, which is per tradition keeping tabs on St. Nick, loses him. The president then gives the military the green light to go searching for the jolly man all dressed in red, but by the time they find him, he’s lost precious time. With no way to deliver all his gifts in time, the military volunteers to distribute the presents.

(Image: The Night Santa Got Lost: How NORAD Saved Christmas)

Watch the trailer for the book:

“It is a story of patriotism and teamwork and peace,” Keane said.

How did Keane conceive the idea of writing The Night Santa Got Lost? It was a combination of scenarios. A writer of other military themed books, Keane said he has spent two Christmas’ with troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. He said the experience to be away from home in a war zone on Christmas was both sad and lonely but also inspiring.

“Spending Christmas in a war zone is very moving,” he said.

Keane combined this idea with a thought that flitted through his head when TSA was receiving grief from citizens for putting grandmas and children through pat downs — Keane’s thought being that Santa would never make it through TSA — and how NORAD has been “tracking” Santa on Christmas Eve for decades. Fittingly, Keane penned the book on Christmas day last year.

The book follows the similar poetic metre and rhyme scheme as “Twas the Night Before Christmas.”

“What I like about [the book] is that it unifies great traditions we have about Santa Clause,” Keane said.

Unfamiliar with NORAD’s Santa tracking tradition? Here’s a brief history. In 1955, an ad in the newspaper taken out by the local department store Sears encouraging kids to call Santa’s direct line. The number, instead of directing good little boys and girls to Santa, went to the Colorado Springs’ Continental Air Defense Command (CONAD) Center. It has since been a tradition maintained by NORAD. In fact, last year first lady Michelle Obama was helping field calls from children wanting an update on Santa’s location when NORAD broke its record. The command saw more than 102,000 calls on Christmas Eve and answered 7,721 emails.

This was the ad run by Sears with the wrong number that directed callers to NORAD. (Image: Wikimedia)

You can begin the countdown with NORAD and its Santa Tracker on Dec. 1. You can purchase the book, here.

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Comments (16)

Army_of_One
Posted on November 13, 2012 at 8:28am
I love it! I am sure it will be severely scrutinized soon after the athiests and the leftists see it. To that I say send in the Apache’s! Ho, Ho, Ho….

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- muffythetuffy
  Posted on November 13, 2012 at 12:14pm
  NOTICE THE TOP RANKING MAN IN PHOTO …
  
  Is Black. So this is the new image of the Greens eating, all gay, smoke free, female US armed forces.
  
  Report this comment
NaughtyNala2k4
Posted on November 12, 2012 at 11:41am
Sound track was “Anchors Away”. Leave it to the NAVY to rescue Santa!!!!!

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kettererbg
Posted on November 12, 2012 at 11:35am
Just be thankful we can still celebrate Christmas. With Owebowma nad the left wing libertards still in control, this might be our last.

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kramh
Posted on November 12, 2012 at 10:59am
That picture of Santa sure looks alot like theTotal Tank picture of Santa in the first The Santa Clause movie. I smell a lawsuit for Christmas.

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dont_drive_slow_in_the_left_lane_obliviot
Posted on November 12, 2012 at 10:46am
prepping the unprepared for martial law.

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DarkestbeforeDawn
Posted on November 12, 2012 at 10:04am
We don’t need Santa Claus anymore. We have Obama Claus to give us everything we wish for.

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The Giver
Posted on November 12, 2012 at 9:22am
Gross. Obama’ s military. Send them home for Christmas. They should regroup and get ready to help Israel.

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GhostOfJefferson
Posted on November 12, 2012 at 9:20am
Is it time to just declare every single holiday “Soldier’s Day”? I have no problem with the military, what I have a problem with is the huge push since the 1980′s to create a culture of military worship. I’m not talking about war movies or just and good reverence for service and sacrifice (for example, Memorial Day and Veterans’ Day), rather I’m talking about this need to make every topic about the military, and every holiday revolving around soldiers and “those fighting for our freedoms”. I mean really, do we need Christmas books about the military saving St. Nick? He’s a Saint, I think God has that covered. I’m also quite certain that Jesus was no fan of war, let alone constant veneration of warriors. Prince of Peace, not Prince of Warriors.

Every holiday I hear more and more about “the troops” than I do about the actual holiday, and each year it gets more and more prevalent. I know this won’t be a popular post, but I’m just telling you what I’m seeing honestly. Again, nothing at all against the military, former soldier myself, and dedicated, patriotic libertarian.

We used to celebrate producers, businessmen and acts of kindness from “normal civilians”. Not so much any longer.

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- Wayn007
  Posted on November 12, 2012 at 9:45am
  You’re right…this won’t be a popular post. But I agree with you. I think we should remember the troops this Christmas, especially the ones spending the holiday in harm’s way, but we do need to be careful that we don’t start worshiping the military, instead of the God that makes our freedom possible.
  That being said, this looks like a cute book.
  
  Report this comment
- dsd13130
  Posted on November 12, 2012 at 10:16am
  I don’t see the military being “WORSHIPPED”. I don’t think they are taken care of by the government fairly, as a matter of fact. IT’S a CHILDREN’S BOOK / FICTION. You think “The Night Before Christmas” is true too??? Who’s being “worshipped” there?
  
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- sonseeker
  Posted on November 12, 2012 at 10:25am
  As a vet I agree wholeheartedly. None of us (that I know of) joined for veneration, in fact many joined for selfish reasons. We did our duty, now get off our band wagon. Veterans day is enough.
  
  Report this comment
- Edohiguma
  Posted on November 12, 2012 at 10:36am
  “We used to celebrate producers, businessmen and acts of kindness from “normal civilians”. Not so much any longer.”
  
  When was that?
  
  Look into the media. Heck, look at twitter trends. The military never trends. Justin Bieber breaking up with his girlfriend, that trends, that makes people cry. Some soldiers sitting on the literal end of the world fighting off savage fascists makes people shrug and whine about how evil America is.
  
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- GhostOfJefferson
  Posted on November 12, 2012 at 10:45am
  DSD
  
  You missed my point. It actually has nothing to do with anything the troops are doing, or that the government is providing or not providing to troops.
  
  Every big event or holiday these days (national level and increasingly local level) involves some kind of long, drawn out and maudlin “tribute to the troops”. And the tributes are getting longer and longer, and the context of the event is flimsier and flimsier to “honor the troops”. Throw in an vastly increasing veneration of cops, firemen and “intelligence operatives”, a good 2/3 of non-”real life” shows being about cops, the military or “intelligence operatives”, well, it seems really overplayed now. You can’t even watch a movie in a theater these days without some giant screen “military is cool!” thing that seems to be mandatory in all screenings these days.
  
  Maybe it’s just the creepy context of turning all uniformed government employees into objects of worship that gets to me. Like I said, it’s not a popular opinion.
  
  Report this comment
- GhostOfJefferson
  Posted on November 12, 2012 at 11:00am
  @Edo
  
  I collect antique paper ephemera. Check out any newspaper from the early 1900′s, or even the 1950′s. I’m not saying there was nothing about military or government, I’m saying the focus has shifted from the private individual (in a good sense) to “our heros in uniform”/cops/teachers/government workers.
  
  Additionally, I’m talking about during holidays and other national events (Super Bowl comes to mind). You can watch historic sporting events on some satellite/cable channels, and any Christmas special made prior to the 1990′s doesn’t show a whole lot regarding “the brave troops protecting our freedom”. In fact, the only Christmas references I see to government troops in older shows puts them in the role of lackeys for the government (Santa Claus is Coming to Town, comes to mind), or as people who just wanted to return to civilian life and get back to normal living (“I’ll Be Home For Christmas”).
  
  I’m not really debating this, I’m simply noting the huge trend towards the opposite extreme of the “hate the troops” we experienced during/after Vietnam, that I’ve noticed is growing at a fairly expotential rate. I don’t expect people to see it or care even if they do, it’s just my take.
  
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biohazard23
Posted on November 12, 2012 at 9:13am
Looks like the kids will be getting another new book in addition to the ones they already want for Christmas. :)

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