Gatlinburg to Sue Celebrate Santa

DefendingSanta.com and The Mountain Press of Gatlinburg, Tennessee now report the city will be forced to sue Santa festival organizers Joe and Mary Moore for defaulting twice on promises to pay back the city for hosting the events. For two years the couple, who also worked as a mall Santa and Mrs. Claus, have evaded accountability for unethical business practices that have rocked the community of professional Santas online and outraged parents who champion a clean portrayal of Santa Claus.

As previously reported, the Santa festivals drew as many as 600 attendees each year who paid more than $400 to attend the events in Gatlinburg over a two-year period in 2009 and 2010. The Moores generated revenue from event registrations, sponsors and merchandise sales that some estimate top $500,000. They admit to owing the City of Gatlinburg nearly $70,000. Since the issue came to light several other vendors have come forward to claim monies owed to them by the Moores have not been paid either.

Public reaction has been strong over the course of the scandal.

“It is upsetting to think that a man and a woman who play the figures of Santa and Mrs. Claus could allow children to read in the news stuff like this,” Melanie Farnsworth, a mother of three from Portland, Oregon, said in response to earlier articles posted at Christmas Newswire about the Joe and Mary Moore scandal. “These days lots of people are in financial trouble and business failures are common. There is no shame in admitting you messed up or that business was bad. Any decent business person would do that. There are ways to handle something like this ethically. Everything I read that falls from Joe Moore’s lips is that he isn’t responsible for his actions and that is not how Santa would act. He should be on the naughty list.”

As the Mountain Press reported in their discussions from other Santa portrayers the actions of Joe and Mary Moore have affected those who once paid to attend their festivals:

“Richard Jones of Fort Worth, Texas, said he attended this year’s event.

For most portrayers, playing the part of Santa isn’t a business. It’s a hobby, and an expensive one, he said.

Jones said he paid Celebrate Santa for classes and other expenses, and that he didn’t get everything originally promised. For one thing, he said, attendees had been promised buffet style meals but when they arrived were given vouchers for meals.

“I just wondered why he couldn’t pay his bills since we were paying … to be there,” he said