Hearing impaired girl, six, is shocked when she visits Santa and he starts to use sign language
- Sadie Adam was overjoyed when she walked towards Santa in Westminster, Massachusetts and he started signing
- Her mother had previously told Santa, played by Westminster Police Chief Salvatore Albert, about his daughter and taught him how to sign
- He said he practiced for three days to get it right
A six-year-old girl who is hearing impaired received an early Christmas treat when she visited Santa and he started to sign for her.
Sadie Adam was stunned when Santa started signing as she walked up the steps towards him in Westminster, Massachusetts on December 6.
'She literally stopped dead in her tracks, and she just stared at him,' her mother Ronelle Adam told WCVB. 'I instantly started tearing.'
In a scene reminiscent of Miracle on 34th Street where a young deaf girl is overjoyed when Santa signs with her, Sadie asked Santa for gifts - a baby and a kitchen - and he understood perfectly.
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Miraculous: Six-year-old Sadie Adam, who is hearing impaired, was stunned when Santa started signing to ask her what she wanted for Christmas. Santa said her eyes became wide and bright
'I am glad I was able to communicate with Sadie,' Westminster's police chief Salvatore Albert, who has played Santa for 15 years in the town, told ABC News.
'It was amazing to see the smile on her face and her eyes wide open with joy that Santa knew sign language. I am going to try to learn more for next year.'
Albert had actually been working on the plan with Sadie's mother, Ronelle Adam, who asked if he would be able to learn enough signs to communicate with her daughter.
'She sat with me for about an hour,' he said. 'I practiced it for three days.'
When he met Sadie - and got it right - he said he was moved to see how her eyes became bright.
Joy: Sadie's mother Ronelle (pictured with Sadie and her big sister Taylor) had asked Police Chief Salvatore Albert, who plays Santa, to learn how to sign for his daughter, and he practiced for days
The story is similar to a scene in the 1994 remake of Miracle on 34th Street, in which Kriss Kringle signs to a young deaf girl, played by five-year-old Sami Krieger (pictured), to ask what she wants for Christmas
'Santa knew my name,' Sadie said after the meeting. 'He knew how to sign it. I told him what I wanted - a kitchen and a baby.'
Her mother said she has not stopped talking about it since.
Albert said it is the first time any parent has approached him with a special request.
'I was very happy to be able to do it,' he said.
The story is reminiscent of a scene in the 1994 remake of Miracle on 34th Street, in which Kriss Kringle, played by Richard Attenborough, signs to a deaf girl, played by five-year-old Sami Krieger, to ask her what she wants for Christmas.
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