Poteau Organization Offers Sensitive Santa Experience

Many children can’t wait to go see Santa Claus this time of the year, but for some it can be an overwhelming experience. That’s why a non-profit organization in LeFlore County is helping out by offering Sensitive Santa.

The Pervasive Parenting Center tells KFSM, the CBS affiliate in Fort Smith, children with disabilities can be timid seeing Santa and tell him what they want on their Christmas list, but with help from the center they can see a softer side of St. Nick.

The Pervasive Parenting Center started Sensitive Santa four years ago. 

The center was started by a family after they found out their son was diagnosed with autism. Kodey Toney and his wife have a son named Connor who was diagnosed when he was three years old.

Toney says he researched autism and wanted to learn more about the disease and found out that there aren’t many resources to learn about the disease in eastern Oklahoma. That’s when he and his wife opened up their center which is located in Poteau.

Sensitive Santa allows kids with autism and other disabilities to create happy memories with their families and Santa Claus.

“We allow them a place to come in and wander around,” said Kodey Toney. “We let them get comfortable with Santa before they actually go up to him.”

Sensitive Santa will be at the Kibios Community Action Center in Stigler on December 8.  On Wednesday, he will be at the Community State Bank in Poteau and December 10 at Carl Albert State College in Sallisaw.  All three events begin at 6 p.m.

Toney says parents should only bring children that have disabilities.