Carrying on as Mrs. Claus

LYNN – Tonight will mark Janet Melanson’s 25th appearance in what has become a Lynn tradition, the annual Christmas parade.It will also mark the first year she has climbed atop Santa’s sleigh, dressed as Mrs. Claus, without parade organizer Richie Viger at the wheel of her float.”I was childhood friends with Richie,” she said of Viger, who died in January. “The first year they went out they didn’t have a Mrs. Claus.”Melanson was at work in the office at John’s Oil when Viger came in after that first parade and complained that it was too hard for Santa to wave to everyone on both sides of the street.”I was on the phone and he said ?do you want to be Mrs. Claus next year?'” she said with a laugh. “It was kind of a joke.”But it stuck. For the next 19 years, Melanson would appear as Mrs. Claus. She said she took six years off early on and her best friend filled in for her, but she cherishes the role that her childhood friend bestowed upon her.”Everyone thought Richie was crazy back in the day,” she said.He started the parade in 1986, the year after he took a very young Jay Walsh over to Saugus on Christmas Eve to find out what all the sirens were about.”It was the Saugus Christmas parade, and he said, ?Why can’t we do this in Lynn?'” Melanson said.What started out with five vehicles driving around random streets has grown into a nearly 100-float parade that has kept true to Viger’s vision of passing through areas that included senior housing, such as Wall Towers, and other Lynn Housing Authority properties like Curwin Circle as well as the Commons, Melanson said. Over the years people urged Viger to change the route or tweak it, but he declined.”That’s what I’m in this for now,” Melanson said. “To make sure his vision is carried on.”With Viger’s death, Jay Walsh, all grown up now, has stepped in to organize the parade, along with his father, John Walsh, who was lifelong friends with Viger.Jay Walsh has outdone himself getting ready for the parade, Melanson said. Santa’s sleigh has been overhauled, shined up and outfitted with new LED lights and now sports a small plaque dedicated to Viger, she explained. She said the first time she climbed aboard the new sleigh was for the Swampscott parade, which took place during the last snow storm. It was emotional, but she said she received a gift when it began to snow.”Richie always wanted just a little bit of snow for the parade, and in Swampscott we had that,” she said. “The snow on the float and the lights, I kept thinking Richie would love this.'”She has been on the sleigh a few times since for various events, and each time it gets a little easier, although she admits she is worried about tonight’s big ride. She will have good company, however. The last piece of parade business Viger took care of before he died was to ask Melanson’s brother Donny to be Santa this year.”Richie asked my brother Donny to do it and his eyes just lit up,” she said. “I’ve been through eight different Santas over the years ? who would have thought the last thing (Richie) would do would be ask my brother to play Santa.”She said in the past Viger would begin calling her right after Thanksgiving, sometimes a dozen times a day, to discuss parade details.”As much as he was a pain in the butt, I miss those calls,” she said.Melanson said she has thought a lot this year about giving up her seat in the sleigh, but she’s decided to wait until after the holiday to make her decision.”I could actually watch the parade with my family, that would be weird,” she said. “I’ve never spent Christmas Eve with my family in 25 years. I don’t know what that would be like – that would be crazy too.”Whether or not she rides again as Mrs. Claus, Melanson said she will always stay involved with the parade.”To make sure all his vision is always there,” she said. “Richie said this was for the middle class people ?and if I can bring five minutes of joy to people by bringing a parade by, then that’s what we’ll do. We might not have a lot but