FORT RILEY, Kan. -- Santa Claus knows the importance of Soldier readiness and he knows it means more than just making sure the tanks are in working order.

Many years ago, he learned the Christmas spirit was lacking on Fort Riley. He knew he had to do something about it. Without the spirit of Christmas, Soldier readiness was suffering.

"When I first got exposed to Fort Riley, I thought they could use a little more Christmas spirit," he said. It was hard to have fun. Life was not fun for the Soldiers, it was very difficult. I tried to think of ways to make it a little more fun."

At first, he wasn't sure just how to go about it so he started by volunteering. People got involved and the spirit meter starting going up, but it wasn't enough.

"The whole meaning of Christmas is giving," he said. "Giving of your time, of your resources, giving of a gift, giving of love."

As he thought about it, he realized what needed to be done. He talked to a few people and Operation Santa Claus was created.

"It was great," he said with a laugh. "They named it after me."

As people started getting involved, the Christmas spirit grew.

But, it can be difficult around a military post, Santa said. There are often times when it is hard for people to feel joyful -- that's when he steps up his game.

Command Sgt. Maj. Andrew T. Bristow II, garrison senior noncommissioned officer, agreed with Santa about the importance of Christmas Spirit.

"It is a vital part of Soldier readiness," Bristow said. "Here at Fort Riley, we are very appreciative of the work Mr. Claus does for our Soldiers and their families. By sharing the Christmas spirit through Operation Santa, not only do children receive gifts, but the joy of Christmas spreads across the post."

Bristow said he is pleased to help Santa's elves who work tirelessly every holiday season to ensure Fort Riley's children are taken care of.

It's been a long time since Santa has seen a problem with Fort Riley's Christmas spirit and he hopes it never fades again. With the Nov. 5 start of Operation Santa Claus, he expects the Christmas joy meter to start moving up.

NAUGHTY AND NICE

One of Santa's greatest joys is visiting with the children of all ages. He said he always gets a kick out of reminding adults of when he visited their homes when they were little boys and girls. He especially likes seeing them grow up.

"(Maj.) Gen. Kolasheski loved playing with toy tanks and trucks when he was little and now he's playing with the big tanks and trucks," Santa said with a laugh.

Maj. Gen. John S. Kolasheski, 1st Infantry Division and Fort Riley commanding general, and Garrison Commander Col. Stephen Shrader are both on the good list this year, which comes as no surprise to Santa.

"They have actually never been on the naughty list," he said. "These guys, they don't become commanders if they were bad boys. Now Col. Shrader, I think he was trying to be naughty a few times, but his folks wouldn't let him be naughty. He has the Christmas spirit built into him all the way to 4th of July. And General Kolasheski, now he has always, always -- always been a good boy."

Santa did clarify that not being on the naughty list doesn't mean they didn't pull pranks and get into mischief, but there's a difference between dipping a girl's ponytail in the ink well and actually being naughty. He also corrected one misconception many people have. There is not a naughty list and a nice list -- it's all one list and next to each name is an N or a G.

Throughout the year the N and G can flip flop. But it's really easy to get on the good list, he said.

"The way to get off the naughty list is to be good," he said. "Do service hours in your community. Make your bed every day. Brush your teeth every night. Help mom with the dishes. Feed the animals and pick up the dog poop from the yard."

WRITE THAT LETTER TO SANTA

Santa said he loves to get letters from children.

"I tell children every time I see them 'write me a letter,'" he said. "It clarifies that they are trying to be a good little boy or girl and that they are thinking about the Christmas spirit. If they are thinking about the Christmas spirit, they are usually acting with the Christmas spirit."

If their writing is not so good, someone can help them. He remembers getting letters from some of their grandparents, even some great-grandparents who wanted nothing more than a new pair of coveralls.

"That was enough to bring them joy," he said. "Today it might be a PlayStation or some kind of a high-end developed game."

GETTING AROUND ON CHRISTMAS EVE

For many years, Santa only shared the sky with birds, but even most of them were asleep by the time he took off from the North Pole.

But now with restricted zones and airplanes, he has to be careful. Fortunately, the elves keep up with modern technology.

"I have special technology on the sleigh," he said. "We check it all the time and NORAD has a beacon that tracks where I'm going. The kids can see right where I'm at on Christmas Eve and the military knows where I am at all times. I don't fly into military airspace I try to stay away from the airfield unless there's housing like there is at Fort Riley."

Even with all of the technology, noradsanta.org and all of the communication systems he has, he always has to be on the lookout.

"I ran into problems in Chicago a long time ago," he said recalling a scary night. "The grid wasn't the way it should have been and they saw me and ignored me. You can't ignore Santa Claus. An airplane can't run into Santa Claus. When they got notified not to ignore me then life was much better for everybody."

Once he is on post, Santa can make quick work of delivering all the gifts.

He said he knows several children are worried their pets will bother him or he will be stopped by the police as a suspicious subject, but he said they should rest assure he gets along with all animals very well and the military police have never given him trouble.

"The MPs are usually not looking for me," he said. "If they have the Christmas spirit they're just going to observe and end up with a candy cane. If they don't have the Christmas spirit they will be unable to see me. I can get in and out and they won't even know.

Lt. Col. Joshua Campbell, Commander of the 97th Military Police Battalion, said he anticipates all of his Soldiers and Department of the Army police officers would end up with a candy cane.

"From what I have seen, they all have the Christmas spirit," Campbell said.

While they are not generally permitted to accept gratuities, he will make an exception if Santa offers them a candy cane.

"That would be considered an acceptable gift," he said. "It is given in the spirit of Christmas and as an appreciation for their hard work. It would not constitute a bribe."

A BUSY TIME FOR THE ELVES AND REINDEER

At last count, Santa said there are 1,300 elves and 1,300 interns working at the North Pole.

"Right now, they are gathering resources," he said. "They are taking polls to see what the real popular requests are and they're getting the logistics put together."

Just like Fort Riley's Soldiers, his elves are committed to their mission. They are the backbone, "the NCO's if you will," of the North Pole Command, Santa said.

The great thing is, they all have a wide variety of skills and massive talent.

"They do everything from uploading and downloading and cleanup and fixing and repairing and building and inventing," he said. "If they see something that needs to be better, they make it better. They don't need approval, they know what is expected of them and they do what is expected of them."

But they also tend to get into mischief. Santa said the North Pole has been going through a lot of shampoo lately because the elves think it is so funny to put peppermint sticks in each other's hair.

While the elves are busy, the reindeer are also prepping for Christmas Eve. While Santa loves all his reindeer, he admits he does have a favorite -- Vixen.

"She is the sweetest one," he said. "She's on my left side and she's in the front. A lot of people think it takes a male up front, but the female is a leader and she knows she's the leader. We may have Rudolph out in front when his light is needed, but Vixen is the leader."

Her natural loving personality makes her a role model for the other reindeer as well.

"They all try to emulate her," he said. "She is friendly with all the Christmas spirit you can have in a reindeer.

SANTA CLAUS IS COMING TO TOWN

Pretty soon Santa will be back at Fort Riley. He'll be watching and listening and making sure the Soldiers and their families have the Christmas spirit because this post holds a special place in Santa's heart for a good reason.

"I have always had an affinity for the 'Big Red One,' ever since the early 1910s," Santa said. "You see, they might be the 'Big Red One' but I am also a big red one -- I am a bigger big red one."