Featured Testimonial About Creighton University
The Santa Claus on Creighton’s campus
Pro tip: If you look exactly like Santa Claus, you must be mindful about the time of day that you visit a daycare. Otherwise, when you’re standing on a ladder, inspecting a smoke detector on a ceiling inside Creighton’s Childhood Development Center, you might get questioned by a curious child.
This is a lesson Justin Burgett learned.
A few years ago, Creighton’s long-time fire safety specialist was completing a routine check when a little girl softly called out to him.
“Santa Claus? … Are you trying to get to the roof?”
It was cute, Burgett said. Super cute. But the humorous moment also served as a reminder to the full-bearded Burgett of his duty to maintain the image of the North Pole icon whose lore will always enthrall and uplift kids (even outside of the holiday season).
“If you’re going to be Santa Claus, you have to play the part,” Burgett said.
For more than a decade, it’s exactly what Burgett’s been doing on Creighton’s campus and across the community.
And it’s been awesome.
* * *
One December, dressed as Santa Claus at All Saints Catholic School in downtown Omaha, Burgett recognized a young boy who, the year prior, had asked Burgett to remove his hat to prove his Santa legitimacy. The boy returned with the same request this time. Burgett was ready.
Burgett tossed off the bright-red Santa hat to reveal white hair, matching his thick white beard. And the room went wild.
“The little boy literally ran to the other kids,” Burgett said, “and yelled to them, ‘He’s the real Santa Claus! He's the real Santa Claus!’”
It used to be that kids wanted to tug on Burgett’s beard. Now, they want to see his hair (he dyes it white starting in November every year).
Occasionally, children will ask how he enters their homes. Burgett carries an old-timey-looking metal key in his pocket and reveals it as his “magic” key.
They ask about his reindeer, which, of course, don’t like to fly without snow, or tend to prefer to wait outside. (Burgett’s always careful to park several blocks away when he’s appearing as Santa at events.)
Burgett wraps tassels around little jingle bells that he’ll hand out — similar to the ones in the movie “The Polar Express.” He sometimes gives out Rudolph red noses. He has an endless supply of candy canes to share. He handwashes his two Santa suits so they always look pristine. And he’s careful to save his best “Ho, Ho, Ho!” voice for the one-on-one interactions with kids.
“It can be a lot of work and the days in December do get pretty busy, but it is such a blessing,” Burgett said. “It’s a gift. My gift.”
He only started portraying Santa Claus because a Creighton colleague remarked that he had the appropriate physical characteristics and an upcoming campus event needed a new person to play the Big Guy. That was 11 years ago.
Now, he does as many appearances as he can at Creighton and across the metro. Many are for charitable organizations — often arranged by former Creighton students who met him on campus.
There’s the All Saints Catholic School, a pre-K through eighth grade academy serving low-income students and families. And the Stephen Center, which serves the unhoused community. He’ll stop by the on-campus childcare and show up at basketball games. He’s flown in a helicopter that’s landed at CHI Health Creighton University Medical Center – Bergan Mercy. He’s visited homes and volunteered at community events for Creighton’s School of Dentistry.
“God gives everyone a gift, and you should use that gift,” Burgett said. “Because in reality, our time on Earth is very short. It’s a tiny moment, but it's a moment, a meaningful moment. And I always say, ‘How are you going to use that time?”
* * *
On a November afternoon earlier this year, Burgett took a seat inside a Creighton campus Starbucks, wearing a bright red hoodie and a red ballcap. Between sips of his iced, red-hued Refresher, he glanced at students walking by. A few did a double-take.
He cracked a smile.
There’s definitely an indescribable joy that Burgett feels every time he’s met with that hope-filled look on the face of adoring children. It’s what makes it all worth it, Burgett said. But there’s a similar feeling when he can make a college student smile, too.
He walks up and down the Mall during finals week, wearing a blue sweater with “Creighton Claus” etched into the front.
One time, he wore a Santa suit T-shirt while lifting weights at the Kiewit Fitness Center. A few Tiktoks were made. He shook hands and took some selfies.
Burgett’s been working at Creighton for 18 years — and for more than a decade, he’s been replacing fire extinguishers, checking smoke detectors, examining exit signs, fixing sprinkler systems, etc.
But he’s a low-key celebrity now, whether there’s snow on the ground or the summer sun is scorching the campus.
“There’s so many kids who have pictures of memories that will last forever,” Burgett said. “Remember this day that we sat with Santa or when Santa did that? It’s so awesome to me. I have so many stories I cherish.”
