Rob Keeble
Member
- Messages
- 12,633
- Location
- GTA Ontario Canada
A member here sent me an email that jolted this memory and i thought i would do this post as a curiosity to find out if ya all had this kind of thing in the USA growing up.
So my Dad established a social club back in the day at the company he worked for when he came out the Navy end of WW 2.
The social club held what we called a Xmas Tree each year. In fact i was very fortunate in that i went to one for the company and one for the Union my Dad belong to at that time.
So whats a Xmas tree in my terms or as i know it or rather as my Dad created it.
Well the social club collected money from each member in proportion to number of kids in each family. Not sure on cut off age but was something like 10 years old.
Social club then organized to buy a "big toy" say something like a dump truck or good metal gun or large doll for girls etc.
Then aside from that Dad insisted on a tuck box that contained prescribed contents. Lol i have no idea if he really thought of kids when he prescribed the contents. It contained a large sausage roll, banna, plastic fruit shaped juice drink, small pkt crisps and small plastic stocking of sweets and a petit four (small decorated square of cake) , party hat, paper mask (like lone ranger) and party horn.
On top of the tuck box we got another lucky dip box. This box was usually sold at Xmas time by one of the large discount or grocery stores. It was a branded box with loads of what we would know today as cheap dollar store toys like say parachute man etc. The box was cereal box cardboard and so printed on sides with snakes and ladder game and maybe checkers or cludo on otherside. The box was made like a mini suitcase with cardboard handles guaranteed to break lol.
So for kids like we were from real blue collar backgrounds to go to this function called a Xmas Tree , once a year was a big big deal.
We had to have haircuts lol short back and sides.
Then when we got to the venue Dad had always arranged that Father Xmas would arrive in some unique way.
Sometimes by plane (yup they broke every rule in those days and landed a bi plane in a huge rec park near a lake just to drop off father Xmas and his sack of presents.
Another time things were setup so he arrived by train or on a fire engine.
When we first arrived we were given the tuck box and lucky dip box and as kids do sat about eating sweets and the. playing with the toys in the lucky dip box waiting in anticipation of father xmas arrival.
My Dad would dress up with a false moustache and a Fez something like the Shriners wear.
He would be on the PA winding up all the kids such that by the time father Xmas arrived we were pretty close to peeing our pants with excitement and anticipation.
Then Father Xmas stood before you. Oh boy for kids back in those days we still believed in Father Xmas and to be standing before "the man" oh boy you quivered . Farther Xmas would hand out your present.
Then you saw wrapping paper fly as all the kids opened their presents and the games began.
We also had a fun time playing various games.
Old fashioned fun games like egg spoon races or sack races etc.
I recall being given a cowboy set at one of them. Thats what spurred me on to do this post.
There were chaps in the set a double holster and belt with two cap guns and a hat and don't forget the sheriffs badge. lol
Years ago Stu posted a pic of himself in an outfit like that, i have one somewhere of myself dressed exactly the same.
So after that long story and ramble my question is did either of your parents companies lay on a Xmas Tree like that for the working mans kids in the US or Canada or anywhere else for that matter?
For me those were great times.
When i ran my own show in SA i did the exact same for my Staff down to the letter of the spec my Dad had created. He was delighted when he heard i kept the tradition going.
I don't know of anyone else even in SA that went to a Xmas Tree.
I can tell you that those tuck boxes had a very unique smell when you opened them. lol
I wonder how something like this would go down these days.
Well hope you enjoyed the story.
So my Dad established a social club back in the day at the company he worked for when he came out the Navy end of WW 2.
The social club held what we called a Xmas Tree each year. In fact i was very fortunate in that i went to one for the company and one for the Union my Dad belong to at that time.
So whats a Xmas tree in my terms or as i know it or rather as my Dad created it.
Well the social club collected money from each member in proportion to number of kids in each family. Not sure on cut off age but was something like 10 years old.
Social club then organized to buy a "big toy" say something like a dump truck or good metal gun or large doll for girls etc.
Then aside from that Dad insisted on a tuck box that contained prescribed contents. Lol i have no idea if he really thought of kids when he prescribed the contents. It contained a large sausage roll, banna, plastic fruit shaped juice drink, small pkt crisps and small plastic stocking of sweets and a petit four (small decorated square of cake) , party hat, paper mask (like lone ranger) and party horn.
On top of the tuck box we got another lucky dip box. This box was usually sold at Xmas time by one of the large discount or grocery stores. It was a branded box with loads of what we would know today as cheap dollar store toys like say parachute man etc. The box was cereal box cardboard and so printed on sides with snakes and ladder game and maybe checkers or cludo on otherside. The box was made like a mini suitcase with cardboard handles guaranteed to break lol.
So for kids like we were from real blue collar backgrounds to go to this function called a Xmas Tree , once a year was a big big deal.
We had to have haircuts lol short back and sides.
Then when we got to the venue Dad had always arranged that Father Xmas would arrive in some unique way.
Sometimes by plane (yup they broke every rule in those days and landed a bi plane in a huge rec park near a lake just to drop off father Xmas and his sack of presents.
Another time things were setup so he arrived by train or on a fire engine.
When we first arrived we were given the tuck box and lucky dip box and as kids do sat about eating sweets and the. playing with the toys in the lucky dip box waiting in anticipation of father xmas arrival.
My Dad would dress up with a false moustache and a Fez something like the Shriners wear.
He would be on the PA winding up all the kids such that by the time father Xmas arrived we were pretty close to peeing our pants with excitement and anticipation.
Then Father Xmas stood before you. Oh boy for kids back in those days we still believed in Father Xmas and to be standing before "the man" oh boy you quivered . Farther Xmas would hand out your present.
Then you saw wrapping paper fly as all the kids opened their presents and the games began.
We also had a fun time playing various games.
Old fashioned fun games like egg spoon races or sack races etc.
I recall being given a cowboy set at one of them. Thats what spurred me on to do this post.
There were chaps in the set a double holster and belt with two cap guns and a hat and don't forget the sheriffs badge. lol
Years ago Stu posted a pic of himself in an outfit like that, i have one somewhere of myself dressed exactly the same.
So after that long story and ramble my question is did either of your parents companies lay on a Xmas Tree like that for the working mans kids in the US or Canada or anywhere else for that matter?
For me those were great times.
When i ran my own show in SA i did the exact same for my Staff down to the letter of the spec my Dad had created. He was delighted when he heard i kept the tradition going.
I don't know of anyone else even in SA that went to a Xmas Tree.
I can tell you that those tuck boxes had a very unique smell when you opened them. lol
I wonder how something like this would go down these days.
Well hope you enjoyed the story.