Pandemic puts Santa in a bubble - KOBI-TV NBC5 / KOTI-TV NBC2

SILVERTON, Ore. (KGW) — If you’re waiting until the last minute to finish that Christmas shopping, you might want to head to Silverton, Oregon.

Silverton’s Santa Claus is still safely visiting with kids before he heads back to the North Pole.

Since the day after Thanksgiving, Santa has been providing some modified magic for kids and parents alike, from the comfort of his very own “Santa Pod.” It’s a plastic bubble-type set up that allows him to safely lose the mask and still interact with kids.

“At first they see it, and then it disappears,” Santa said about the plastic divider. “And we can just talk, especially when they’re right here, and I can really get close and tell them some of the secrets of Christmas, because there are a lot.”