GREENSBORO, N.C. — It all began in the late 1950s. Friendly Center got a mechanical "waving Santa" from Pennsylvania for the holiday season. Little did they know that it would become a symbol of the holidays and continue to greet shoppers 62 years later.
"We get calls all the time asking us when will the Waving Santa be up. We even hear stories of 3 or 4 generations of people having their pictures made in front of the Santa, creating a sort of time-lapse memory book of their holidays," said Kotelnicki.
In addition to the nostalgic Santa, they have other events and pop-up stores to keep things fun while you shop.
"Our pets pics with Santa program is a huge success," said Kotelnicki, "In fact this year we have an animal shelter pop-up that will bring out dogs to be adopted and they will be modeling holiday wear for pooches."
Add to that some wandering carolers and some "Instagram-able" sets and you've got the entire holiday shopping experience.
Check out Friendly Center's website for details.
