Riley and Jake are among hundreds of children who look forward to seeing Santa come down their street each year, flinging lollies from the Albion Park Rural Fire Brigade truck. 

“We make sure any last-minute running around is done first thing in the morning to ensure we are home for the boys to wait for Santa to come round on the fire truck,” the boys’ mum, Kristie Witt, told the Mercury. 

“They spend all day running in and out of the house listening for the siren that signals he’s close.

“[I watch] their little faces light up with excitement when they hear the siren and run to the letterbox to sit and wait. [It] means I can get a lot of things around the house done and organised, ready for Christmas day. It’s all part of our Christmas tradition.” 

The tradition may fit well into the schedules of area families, but the for RFS volunteers who drive and man the truck, it has become too big to handle. 

RFS members wrote to residents in Albion Park and Albion Park Rail last week, advising “with great sadness” their decision to axe the Santa run after more than 30 years. 

RFS Superintendent Greg Wardle said members had struggled to find the time and fundraising dollars to continue the tradition, with the cost of lollies blowing out to more than $3000. 

“When they started the lolly run back then, Albion Park and Albion Park Rail were relatively small in size,” he said. “Over the last  5-10 years the area has grown significantly and it’s taking a lot more time to undertake the Santa run.” 

“They’ve gone from needing two trucks and two Santa Clauses, to five or six trucks – which we don’t have – and five or six Santa Clauses. It no longer takes four hours – it takes a full day.”

Supt Wardle said work health and safety regulations were also a consideration – albeit a lesser one, which could be worked around. 

“We can’t have Santa Claus standing on the back of the truck anymore … and we need to put precautions in place to make sure kids aren’t running out on roadways.”

Since announcing the decision, the RFS has gone into talks with Albion Park Village Shopping Centre on ways to resurrect the tradition. Those talks are continuing.