In its twentieth year, the North Pole Express at the Essex Steam Train has become a magical tradition for audiences of all ages to travel to the North Pole, sing along to Christmas carols, and meet Santa, Mrs. Claus, their elves and sleepy servers. However, this year audiences might notice one slight change, Morgan students have taken over the North Pole. Last year about seven to eight Morgan students participated on the North Pole Express, but this year it went up to thirty-one Morgan students.
Library media specialist, Shannon Robinson, is a performer on the North Pole Express, named Jazzy Jubilee. This is her fourth year participating, and she is responsible for leading an entire car on the train to make sure families enjoy their 90-minute ride to the North Pole and back to Essex. During that time, Robinson has worked with several Morgan students, including her daughter. “By being a performer, it was a great way to bond with my daughter (2022 alumni Kate Robinson), who also worked on the train.” Mrs. Robinson said.
This year, Mrs. Robinson was asked by Joseph Cassineri, the assistant operations manager at the Essex Steam Train, to come to Morgan and recruit students that were interested in being a part of the North Pole Express. “It’s a great opportunity for Morgan students,” said Mrs. Robinson. “It’s a fun holiday job, and it gets you into the holiday spirit.”
Senior, Mia Colon, has worked on the North Pole Express for two years as an elf. Elves run through the train cars, and help pass out hot chocolate and cookies to families. She said after Mrs. Robinson introduced her students to the North Pole Express and her love for Christmas, she was excited to start the job. Mia was intrigued that she was able to get paid to do something she loves. “I was working with my close friends, so it made the experience a lot better, and I was able to meet new people.” Mia said.
Joining the 30 other Morgan students, senior Jason Mansfield enters his first year working on the North Pole Express as a sleepy server. On the North Pole Express, audience members are informed that Sleepy Servers have been asleep for eleven months, and they hold trays of hot chocolate while the elves hand it out, as well as cookies. Jason saw that some of his friends worked on the train, and thought it would be a great experience. “Mrs. Robinson told me about the job, so she asked me if I would do it, and I thought it would be fun.” Jason said it’s a little nerve racking when working with new people and trying to carry a tray full of hot chocolate, but if it’s someone’s first job, it’s going to be a great experience.
This year, there will be over 1,400 performances on the North Pole Express, and will serve more people on the train than the Rockefeller Christmas Show in New York City. Currently, all the tickets to go on the North Pole Express are sold out, which is around 87,000 tickets. Being an Elf or a Sleepy Server has become a new tradition at Morgan.
