As children and their families first open the door to a rustic cabin tucked back in the woods, they’re hit with the thick, unmistakable warmth of a wood-burning stove and the hearty glow of lamplight bouncing off polished wood paneling.

Santa – the man himself – is ready with a smile, a twinkle in his eye and words of encouragement for little ones who may be a bit nervous. Inside this small, cozy space, children have one-on-one time with the Jolly Old Elf, as much time as they need to relay their wishes (and for mom or dad to get that killer pic for social media).

Outside, under lights strung between swaying pines, families who arrived by hayride through a dazzling light show now encircle a roaring, stone-lined fire and sip hot cocoa dotted with marshmallows as they await their turn with Santa.

Holly Pahl is aware that the Santa experience at Pahl’s Country Store in Buckley is truly special, and she hears as much from visitors more times than she can count each holiday season. But she’s less proud of the setting than she is of the man who dons that famous red suit every year.

“He’s just so real – I mean, he’s Santa,” Pahl, who owns Pahl's with her husband Dave, tells The Ticker. “He’s gentle, soft-spoken, he’s kind. When you hear somebody say that what we’re doing here is magical, you want to keep that going. And he’s a huge part of that.”

The man in the suit is Boon native Rex Taylor, who retired after more than 46 years in various roles at the Four Winns boat factory in Cadillac. He’s been a Santa since around 1990, when a friend of his from the Moose Lodge was looking to retire from the role and gave Taylor his suit.

Taylor started out doing family gatherings before becoming the official Santa of record at Ace Hardware in Cadillac and taking his talents to other locations throughout northwest Michigan.

“When I first started out, I had to have my beard bleached because it still had color in it – brown and red, sort of a rusty color,” Taylor tells The Ticker. “I don’t have to worry about that anymore.”

He’s been at Pahl’s for six years, and Pahl says he was nothing short of a godsend after a few false starts in their fledgling Santa program. They decided to expand beyond their tremendously popular pumpkin patch experience about nine years ago, but it took a while to find the right guy.  

“I could tell you horror stories about some of the Santas we’ve had,” she says. “One of the things we were told by some friends when we were just starting out was that while we had the perfect setup for this, Santa will make or break the whole thing. We had to realize that through the school of hard knocks.”

Patience and a calm, level demeanor are what Taylor tries to bring to the table in every interaction. If you start there, he says, you can’t go wrong.

“If the kids are nervous, I tell the parents not to force them, because then they’ll just be scared. And sometimes it can be a challenge because of different moods the kids might be in,” he says. “But it’s exceptional fun just to see the smiles on the little ones, and often times the adults get just a big a kick out of it as the kids do.”

Taylor has learned things over the years. One of these things is to always have a spare suit in the car.

“Some young parents must not get the concept of diapers. If the box says 18-22 pounds, that’s child size, not load capacity. I’ve been peed on, I’ve been pooped on – you name it,” he says. “One time this little boy had been working on a blue sucker. He had this big blue goatee, both hands were blue and sticky. And I thought, ‘Oh boy, this is gonna be a trip to the dry cleaners.’ When she tried to hand him to me, he screamed and backed up. I was like, 'Oh, thank you Lord."

On a more serious note, he’s learned to be diplomatic with kids in an effort to manage expectations and protect their parents.

“One thing you never want to do is promise a child anything, because maybe their parents can’t afford it. You just can’t ever promise,” he says. “I just say ‘Well, we’ll see what we can do.’ Some children – and little ones – have asked for virtual reality goggles. Those have gotta be pricey.”

Pahl and Taylor are proud of their efforts to give people of all kinds a memorable Santa experience. In addition to special needs children, they work with adult foster care homes and people with various disabilities.

“If there’s special needs or special requests, we call down there and give (Santa) a heads up so he’s prepared,” Pahl says. “That really helps a lot.”

The setup at Pahl's, which provides private time with Santa, also lends itself to anyone who might be overstimulated by a more traditional Santa experience.

“I don’t want to bash a mall Santa, because there’s a use for a mall Santa. But with that setting comes a lot of scariness – you’re out in public, everyone is walking by and they’re all staring at you,” Pahl says. “Here you get to go in with people you know and love and see Santa that way. So it takes the fear out, and it’s a really cool thing for families.”

Photo: Holly Pahl and Rex Taylor