CPR Promotional Check-Up

The Flight To The North Pole

This was something I saw the Orlando Magic doing with kids in 1993. It was amazing. Arguably the field-leveler of all holiday promotions. There simply is not a warm that's fuzzier then flying kids to meet Santa at the North Pole.

I lobbed it out at the group and it's been done to varying degrees over the years. I've seen Power 96 in Miami do it on a huge scale with a Carnival Cruise Lines DC-10, and I saw one of the Newcap stations do it with a small regional carrier.

You'll need:

• A plane
• A hanger OR the end of a concourse that can be papered over and decorated so that the kids can exit without seeing the real world
• Bodies and volunteers to staff and decorate
• Presents
• A sponsor
• A TV partner
• A portly and jolly man who has passed an array of background checks and screenings. (Ask me about the time that KSFM hired a convicted pedophile to be their mall Santa photographer for an event)

The event is simple:

• Parents call, enter, attend remotes, go to the VIP Cl...nevermind...and win a spot or two spots on the plane for their kids.
• On a Saturday there's a party at the airport, kids are loaded on the plane.
• Pilots and flight attendants are dressed as elves
• Windows are closed and covered
• The plane taxis around the runway and revs it engines while the Head Elf describes seeing elk...no...wait...those are REINDEER below them. They must be close.
• Plane bumps to a "landing" and taxi's into a hanger
• Door closes and the kids deplane at Santa's workshop.
• There's a party, food, they meet the big guy and an hour later they board and fly home

That's pretty much it. Though "it" is a "lot". One station onboard for '10 and another one attempting to be the radio partner for an established flight.

Kid Curry at Power 96 was getting interviewed at "Santa's workshop" by a Miami TV crew when a little kid pulled on his shirt. Kid (PD) looks down and a little boy asks "Is this really the North Pole?" Kid: "Yes!". Little boy: "Wow".