Today is Thursday, December 20th, 2007; Karen's Korner #1214

A Chrsistmas story taken from yesterday's Gimundo email:
 
Secret Santa Gives Thousands of Dollars to Strangers

Ever had a Secret Santa? Most of us have played that game at school, or around the office during the holiday season – and our gifts are usually pretty underwhelming. Paperweights, pencil sharpeners, and a tube of lipstick aren't exactly on top of our Christmas wish lists – but you'd probably like your Secret Santa a lot more if he just gave you a handful of cash: $200 worth, to be exact.

No, we haven't been hitting the eggnog – there really is a Santa Claus traveling around the U.S. with a bag full of money, and if you've been very good this year, you just might make his list.

This month, an anonymous businessman from Kansas City is criss-crossing the country with $75,000 in cash. He won't be sliding down any chimneys, but he's stopping in at bus stations, thrift shops, and laundromats, seeking out friendly strangers who seem down on their luck. All he asks in return for his generous cash gift is that his beneficiaries do a good deed for someone else.

This Good Samaritan may seem saintly, but he's merely stepping into the boots of an old friend: the original Secret Santa, Larry Stewart.

Stewart, who died of cancer last year, spent 25 Christmases traveling the country, doling out over $1 million to people in need. When Stewart was on his deathbed, his friend promised him that the Secret Santa tradition would live on long after he was gone.

Back