Every year in the lead up to Christmas, the small community of St. Nikolaus, in the West German state of Saarland, come together to form the St. Nikolaus post office.

For the past 56 years, children all over the world have been writing letters to and receiving letters from St. Nikolaus, an early Christian bishop famed for having performed several miracles and secret gift-giving.

But here in Germany, he shares any present requests he gets from children with the Christ Child, who is the present bearer.

"The Christ Child brings the presents," St. Nikolaus tells CGTN. "I get the letters and then pass on the wishes to the Christ Child."

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Looking very much like the saint, with his long white beard, high, pointy hat and pastoral staff leaning against the wall behind, he sits at his regal desk, awash with a myriad of colorful children's handwritten letters and drawings, diligently replying to every letter he gets.

"I answer children's letters here," he says, "and I'm happy about every letter I get. The children take the time to write to St. Nikolaus and I take the time to answer the children's letters, which gives me great pleasure. 

"Most of the children write are about the coronavirus," he continues, "the war (in Ukraine). They're afraid for a few people, afraid for their little sister, because illnesses are spreading again and I write back that we have to get through it, hope it gets better."

A modern tradition

This festive tradition was started back in 1966, when an employee of a pharmaceutical company began sending small gifts and letters to the children of his clientele, addressed from the saint.

When other children heard of this, they began writing to St. Nikolaus. Today the St. Nikolaus post office receives more than 30,000 letters from 45 different countries, says Elke Richter, the daughter of that pharmaceutical employee.

"It all started with my father doing voluntary work here," she tells CGTN. "I moved to St. Nikolaus from Saarbrücken to support him. Today, we get letters from all over the world. A lot lately come from Hong Kong, Taiwan and so on and we also answer the letters in eight different languages, including braille."

Elke is one of around 40 volunteers who helps St. Nikolaus reply to every child.

Sabine Gerecke is the head of the Children's Letter Campaign, sorting hundreds of colorful envelopes into crates with the names of many different volunteers on them.

"There are many children who simply tell Santa something about what they have experienced over the year, how school is, where they maybe were on vacation – or ask Santa what he does in the summer, whether he is married, whether he has children and things like that," she explains.

She pauses and begins again, "but of course there are also children who tell St. Nikolaus sad stories, perhaps when a family member is ill or their parents have separated, or now Ukrainian children who say that they fled to Germany."

And why do the volunteers do all this? "To conjure up a sparkle in the children's eyes," says Gerecke. "It's just great to make the children so happy, and the best day is always when the first mail leaves the post office and you know tomorrow the first children will finally have their letter in the mailbox."

St. Nikolaus agrees. "They want to write something different to someone, and every child gets an answer. I'm glad that I have so many people so that every child can look forward to a letter. Every child is a friend."

Keeping the spirit of Christmas alive for children around the world has become an important job for the volunteers of St. Nikolaus, who by chance have become the keepers of so many children's secrets and wishes.