Santa Claus ditched his reindeer and sleigh for a helicopter to visit an Alabama GMC dealership last week.
Howard Bentley Buick-GMC in Albertville worked with the Marshall County Sheriff's Office to arrange the aerial transportation for an annual event offering families free photos with Santa and Mrs. Claus.
"Last year at our Santa event, I noticed kids were outside waiting on Santa Claus to arrive, and when he pulled up, he was in a red truck," Jon Conner, the dealership's general sales manager, told The Sand Mountain Reporter. "I was thinking in my mind, if I was 5 years old, do I really think Santa Claus pulls up in a truck? I decided then that I wanted to get him here in a helicopter for the next year."
The dealership treated hundreds of children to cookies, drinks, balloon animals and a book to take home. It was the sixth year of the Santa photos event.
"When our children were little, you had to go to surrounding communities to have activities like this," said owner Wayne Bentley, "so as a business owner we wanted to provide experiences like these for those in our local community."
