A familiar voice crackled on the radio and then became clear.
“Ho, ho, ho, Merry Christmas to Pennsylvania,” Santa said, his words instantly evoking smiles from volunteers at the ham radio station — and two excited siblings — at the University of Scranton.
The station’s floor-to-ceiling windows revealed the steady snow covering the ground outside and the twinkle of Christmas lights on nearby buildings. Santa’s boisterous chuckles could be heard from the hallway — and on 3.916 MHz, a popular frequency for ham radio operators.
Nathaniel Frissell, associate professor of physics and engineering, answered the call to W3USR.
“This is Whiskey Three Uniform Sierra Romeo… we can hear you,” Frissell said.
His children — Anthony, 6, and Danielle, 1 — had a connection to the North Pole.
Connection made through Santa Net
Ham radio operators have coordinated the holiday tradition through Santa Net for 20 years. The 3916 Nets, a group that calls itself the “friendliest nets in all of ham radio,” provides the experience at no charge to families.
The university opened its amateur radio station, located on the fifth floor of the Loyola Science Center, last year. This is the second year Frissell, students and community volunteers have welcomed the public to speak to Santa on ham radio.
“People are just so excited to be able to do it. They love hearing him laugh, you know, ‘ho ho ho’ on the radio, and just get to talk to him,” Frissell said. “It's really, really nice.”
Volunteers Bob Nicolais, of Dunmore, and Ken Martin, of Scranton, prepared for the station to communicate with Santa last week.
“Last year, we had a lot of fun with it, and the kids seemed to really love it. So this year, we figured we'd get a little more organized and try to do it every night that we could get the kids in,” Martin said.
Speaking to Santa
Before Santa starts his radio calls, families or ham radio operators put their information in a digital queue. Santa first talked to kids from New Jersey, then Kansas. Pennsylvania was next.
Anthony smiled as he told Santa he wanted Lego sets for Christmas. Danielle, up past bedtime, tried to eat the mic.
“Danielle, don't eat the microphone. We have microphones that you can eat … but don't eat the one at the radio,” Santa said, laughing. “Oh my goodness, you're so cute.”
Frissell and his wife, Rachel Frissell — a faculty specialist in physics and engineering at the university — smiled throughout the connection.
“It's really great for ham radio, because it really shows families that this is one more reason why ham radio is interesting,” Nathaniel Frissell said. “I think it really brings an extra sparkle to the holiday season.”
Santa asked the Frissells to join him in saying, “Ho, ho, ho, Merry Christmas!”
After speaking with Santa, Anthony knew two things he needed to leave out on Christmas Eve: “Carrots and cookies.”
Connect with Santa
The W3USR station on the fifth floor of the Loyola Science Center will be open to children and their parents from 7:30 to 9 p.m. for three additional dates: Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Families should arrive by 7:45 p.m. to make sure they can be checked into the queue.
