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Human Interest

Terminally Ill 5-Year-Old Gets His Last Christmas Wish Before Dying in Santa’s Arms

By Lindsay Kimble•@lekimble

Posted on December 12, 2016 at 1:48pm EST

Eric Schmitt-Matzen

// Source Eric Schmitt Matzen/Facebook

This year, veteran Santa Claus portrayer Eric Schmitt-Matzen was the one with tears in his eyes as he helped one special little boy in his final moments of life.

Schmitt-Matzen, who portrays the jolly man in the red suit every year for dozens of events, recently answered the call to visit a terminally ill child in the hospital just before his death, he told the Knoxville News Sentinel.

“[A local nurse] said there was a very sick 5-year-old boy who wanted to see Santa Claus,” the 60-year-old told the Sentinel about the request to visit the boy at a nearby hospital. “I told her, ‘Okay, just let me change into my outfit.’ She said, ‘There isn’t time for that. Your Santa suspenders are good enough. Come right now.’ ”

Upon arrival just 15 minutes later, the little boy’s mother gave Schmitt-Matzen a gift to give to her son. “I sized up the situation and told everyone, ‘If you think you’re going to lose it, please leave the room. If I see you crying, I’ll break down and can’t do my job,’ ” he explained to the Knoxville News Sentinel.

Schmitt-Matzen entered the hospital’s intensive care unit, and sat down on the boy’s bed, asking, ” ‘Say, what’s this I hear about you’re gonna miss Christmas? There’s no way you can miss Christmas! Why, you’re my Number One elf!’ ”

“I gave him the present,” Schmitt-Matzen said. “He was so weak he could barely open the wrapping paper. When he saw what was inside, he flashed a big smile and laid his head back down.”

Then, the child asked, ” ‘They say I’m gonna die. How can I tell when I get to where I’m going?’ ”

In response, Schmitt-Matzen told the child, ” ‘When you get there, you tell ’em you’re Santa’s Number One elf, and I know they’ll let you in.’ ”

The two shared a hug, and the little boy asked, ” ‘Santa, can you help me?’ ”

“I wrapped my arms around him. Before I could say anything, he died right there. I let him stay, just kept hugging and holding on to him,” Schmitt-Matzen explained. “Everyone outside the room realized what happened. His mother ran in. She was screaming, ‘No, no, not yet!’ I handed her son back and left as fast as I could.”

The devastating moment shook Schmitt-Matzen, he admitted.

“I cried all the way home,” Schmitt-Matzen told the newspaper. “I was crying so hard, I had a tough time seeing good enough to drive.” He added, “Actually, I thought I might crack up and never be able to play the part again.”

Though, one more show helped him realize the importance of bringing joy to children.

“When I saw all those children laughing, it brought me back into the fold. It made me realize the role I have to play,” Schmitt-Matzen said. “For them and for me.”

RayThom wrote:Is this another "fake news" item?

Bicycle Bill wrote:

RayThom wrote:Is this another "fake news" item?

No, Mr. Grinch, this it legit.

-"BB"-

RayThom wrote:Is this another "fake news" item?

Econoline wrote:I always thought You've gotta be pretty damn drunk to drink whiskey and wine together...

No one has been able to confirm the 'boy dies in Santa's arms' viral story

By Katie Dowd

Updated 12:39 pm, Wednesday, December 14, 2016


This year, veteran Santa Claus portrayer Eric Schmitt-Matzen was the one with tears in his eyes as he helped one special little boy in his final moments of life

You probably saw this heartbreaking story in your Facebook feed this week: A young cancer patient gets one last visit from Santa, only to pass away in his arms.

But, as debunking site Snopes and now the newspaper that initially wrote the story note, the story isn't necessarily iron-clad. That isn't to say it didn't happen; it could well have. But so far, no one has been able to verify the events.

The original story ran as a column by Sam Venable in the Knoxville News-Sentinel and detailed how a nurse contacted part-time Santa Eric Schmitt-Matzen for an emergency visit to a five-year-old terminal cancer patient. Schmitt-Matzen says he "got to the hospital in 15 minutes," just in time to hold the boy before he passed.

The story was picked up nationally and internationally, and Schmitt-Matzen has given more interviews about the story, each time affirming that he is keeping the boy's information private out of respect for the family. But no one from the boy's family or a hospital has been found who can corroborate Schmitt-Matzen's story.

The News-Sentinel is now investigating Schmitt-Matzen's story and has issued a statement saying the paper is "no longer standing by the veracity" of the tale:

Since publication, the News Sentinel has done additional investigation in an attempt to independently verify Schmitt-Matzen's account. This has proven unsuccessful. Although facts about his background have checked out, his story of bringing a gift to a dying child remains unverified. The News Sentinel cannot establish that Schmitt-Matzen's account is inaccurate, but more importantly, ongoing reporting cannot establish that it is accurate.

Therefore, because the story does not meet the newspaper's standards of verification, we are no longer standing by the veracity of Schmitt-Matzen's account.

Snopes contacted several hospitals in Knoxville; East Tennessee Children's Hospital and the University of Tennessee Medical Center which also both confirmed that no such event took place at their hospitals.


Additionally, Schmitt-Matzen has now admitted the facility wasn't 15 minutes away. He now says it was "in East Tennessee."

"Certainly, if we are in error on this, we want to be the very first to come out and say — if there is an error — it's on us," Venable