When I was in elementary school in
Saginaw, Michigan, back in the 1950's, Paul Davis was my neighbor as well as
classmate. Paul's birthday is December 16th. Every year for his birthday
treat he would take to school wonderful Santa face cookies, complete with
raisin eyes and coconut beards.
I would always make sure to walk home with Paul on those days,
just in case someone had been absent and he had an extra cookie or two.
Somehow, one cookie survived long enough for me to show my mother. She got
the recipe from
Paul's mother and bought the special cookie cutter at Morley Brothers, our
wonderful all-purpose department store.
Over the years, my mother and I would continue to make these
cookies. After I got married in the mid-60's, I bought my own cookie cutter.
We had three daughters and the cookies remained a must-do at Christmas time. I was a stay-at-home mother in those days and would make
the Santa cookies for my daughters' class parties. Some special teachers
would get a plate of them years after they taught our daughters. Eventually,
my mother gave me her Santa cookie cutter and I guarded both of them because
Morley's had closed years before and we never saw anything even resembling
these wonderful Santa faces.
Several years ago in late December, I had made several batches
and the two plastic cutters were sitting on the cupboard waiting to be
handwashed and put away for another year. Well, my oldest daughter decided to
help out by loading the dishwasher. You guessed it ... the two treasured
plastic cutters came out distorted and totally unusable. I was sick!
For some reason, I had kept the original paper insert from the
cookie cutter box. So, I knew that they were from Aunt Chick's in Tulsa,
Oklahoma. Now, it was time to see if that company was still in business.
Honestly, I wasn't optimistic but if I couldn't replace them, then a
long-standing tradition had come to an abrupt halt.
That January, I wrote to the Tulsa Chamber of Commerce and
inquired about Aunt Chick's cookie cutters. I enclosed a copy of the insert
that I'd kept for so many years. Within days I received a reply. They even
sent me newspaper clippings about Aunt Chick (she had died in 1982) and they
told me that the cookie cutters were still available at The Final Touch in
Tulsa. They also told me that Aunt Chick's granddaughter, Pat Kimbrel, had
taken over the business and it was now called Chickadees Cookery Company in
Irving, Texas.
I was elated! I phoned The Final Touch and explained what had
happened and said that I wanted to buy TEN Santa cookie cutters. The woman
told me that they were only available in sets (Santa, star, tree, stocking.)
But I didn't want the other designs and couldn't afford to buy ten SETS.
So, I decided to call Chickadees Cookery Company. I was able to
talk with Pat Kimbrel and tell her about the happy memories connected with
her grandmother's cookie cutters. She said that she hoped to get them back
into distribution once again. Through Pat I was able to buy four Santa
cutters. Then, several weeks later, I received a note from The Final Touch
saying that they found six Santa cutters and asked if I still want them.
I phoned to say "Yes!" and sent a check. So, within
about four months I went from having no Santa cutters to having ten, the
exact number that I stated that I wanted in the first place!
It was wonderful to be able to do business with two women who
went out of their way to satisfy a customer. And, now the family tradition of
the Santa face cookie cutters continues not only in our house but also in the
home of our oldest daughter, who has since married. At this point, it's three
generations strong.
So, Happy Birthday, Paul Davis, this December 16th wherever you
are. I'll bet you just never knew that your old friend, neighbor and
classmate would perpetuate the cookie tradition for nearly a half-century.
Thanks to you and your mother and with the help of some dear women in both
Oklahoma and Texas, we'll be enjoying our very special Santa cookies for many
years to come.
Sometimes you just never know how many lives you affect or for
how many years the influence will be felt. Merry Christmas from Kentucky.
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