The History of the AORBS Revised as of July 17, 2008
Compiled from the notes of Santa Tom Hartsfield, Founder of AORBS; Santa Tim Connaghan, former Executive Director & Past President of AORBS; Santa John Degel, former assistant to Mr. Trolli and other AORBS members.
"BT"
In August, 1994, the German mail order company, “OTTO” had a unique vision of assembling ten Santas to appear in a commercial for their company... out of that vision grew an organization which, for 14 brief, but glorious, years stretched around the world.
The filming lasted from 3 p.m., until 5 a.m. the next morning. There was a great deal of free time between takes and one Santa took a few pictures of the group, which he offered to send to everyone later.
During their time together, they developed a sense of brotherhood, which evolved from the many stories about their experiences and discussions on the art of being a Santa ambassador. Santa Ed Murphy suggested the group gather one day, in the future, for lunch. The Santas decided January would be good since all of them would be very busy in the coming months -- especially in December -- they decided to meet for a luncheon the third Sunday in January.
They
also discussed the need for a name for their group. After kicking around
a few names, Santa Tom Hartsfield came up with “Amalgamated Order.” He
thought this would be a name which humorously hinted at a union or club.
The group then added “Real Bearded Santas,” and it became their fun
loving, official name -- "The Amalgamated Order of Real Bearded Santas."
The first luncheon was coordinated by Santa Tom Hartsfield and held, as planned, on the third Sunday in January, 1995, at Clearman’s Northwoods Inn in La Mirada, California. The original ten Santas were present: Joe Crozier, Harry Frazier*, Tom Hartsfield, Bob Kokol, Joe Leavitt, Jim Lewis, and Ed Murphy*, Leonard Ray, Frank Turner, and Jay Wright*. (Santas Harry Frazier, Ed Murphy and Jay Wright have passed away.)
For the next eight years the luncheon became a tradition -- always on the third Sunday in January and always at Clearman’s.
The
membership requirements were quite simple. There were no dues, only one
meeting a year and everyone who joined was a charter member... and each
Santa only paid for what he ate.
As the years passed, the organization began to expand. Calls came in from other Santas who read about the group in the media, or heard about it from friends. And, as various members traveled or worked, they invited other Santas they met to join the organization.
In
2001 and 2002, Santa Tim Connaghan began hosting summer picnics,
assisted by Santa Richard Christie. The picnics were sponsored by Santa
Tim’s company, RealSantas.com and coincided with his annual Santa
Schools.
Together, Santa Tim and Santa Richard, through their business connections, added dozens of new members from all over the United States and a few foreign countries.
Santa
Tom hosted the annual January Luncheons himself through 2001 and Santa
Harry Evans hosted the Luncheons in 2002 and 2003. A former university
president, Santa Harry did all the paperwork -- invitations, media
coverage and registration. He also arranged to have the first photo book
printed in 2003.
In
the fall of 2003, Santa Tom began seeking a new location for the 2004,
luncheon. The membership had grown so rapidly, there were 80 Santas,
plus guests, at the 2003 luncheon; a larger facility was needed to hold
all the Santas who attended. He chose the Acapulco in Long Beach and
arranged for the photographer
About that same time Santa Tom came to Santa Tim with a proposal to take over the AORBS. The mailing lists numbered more than 200 Santas, and it was becoming more difficult for either Santa Tom or Santa Harry to run everything. An offer was made to Santa Tim to “buy” the group for approximately $2,000 -- the approximate amount Santas Tom and Harry had invested (and not needed) spent in managing the AORBS -- Santa Tim didn’t have the money; but Harry and Tom, seeing the need for qualified help, decided to turn the association over to him.
Santa
Tim agreed, taking over the management of the association and becoming
its first Executive Director. He also proposed the organization evolve
to a dues-paying organization to help cover the operating costs involved
with the growing membership -- and to eventually pay back Santas Tom and
Harry. (Two years later, Santa Tim offered to reimburse Santas Tom and
Harry --they both graciously declined, essentially donating the funds to
the association).
The 2004 luncheon with more than 109 Santas, and an equal number of guests, proved too much for the Acapulco and a larger facility had to be found for the following year.
That
summer Santa Tim’s annual picnic became an official AORBS member picnic,
held at Knott’s Berry Farm with nearly 100 Santas in attendance.
In 2005 and 2006 the luncheons were held at Steven’s Steak House in Commerce, with 133 and 122 Santas, respectively, attending.
In the summer of 2005 the annual Picnic was hosted by the San Diego area Santas and more than 60 Santas and friends had a great time with fun, food and even some Santa games.
Also in 2005, Santa Tim’s company began working on a convention as an outgrowth of his Santa Schools, but on a much larger scale. After much consideration and discussion, Santa Tim decided it would be the first ever convention for the AORBS.
The
January 2006 Luncheon was a great success and Sparkhill Productions
brought their cameras to interview the Santas and their wives. This was
for a documentary they were producing on today’s “real” Santa. In
addition to the luncheon Sparkhill interviewed more than 200 Santas for
their documentary.
In July 2006, AORBS held its first “Discover Santa” Convention -- a three-day event in the city of Branson, Missouri, hosting 300 Santas and more than 250 Mrs. Claus, helpers and friends of Santa. The convention received national and international media coverage and to this day is still considered the largest Santa Convention ever held. Sparkhill also filmed major portions of the Convention for their documentary.
The
AORBS membership more than doubled following the world-wide media
attention garnered by the convention. 1,100 individuals were on the
mailing list and the paid membership exceeded 600. Those numbers made it
more and more difficult for just one person to coordinate and manage. At
the convention Santa Tim proposed the forming of a board of directors
and the incorporation of the AORBS as a non-profit organization.
In
2007 the Annual Luncheon was formerly renamed the ‘Founders Luncheon”
and was held aboard the Queen Mary in Long Beach, California. Chaired by
Santa Joe Moore, for the first time the event had a D.J. (Santa Ric
Erwin), a small vendor fair and a guest speaker was added.
Famed sports broadcaster and author Charlie Jones entertained the Santas with some of his memories and how he wrote his most recent book. Jones brought copies of the book, “Christmas Memories with Mr. & Mrs. Santa.” Many of the couples who were featured in the book attended the luncheon.
The first Board of Directors met via telephone conference in January of 2007 to begin incorporation and establishing the future of the AORBS. They selected the following directors and officers:
· President - Santa Tim Connaghan
· External Vice President /Convention Chairman - Santa Joe Moore
· Internal Vice President/Membership Chairman - Santa Tom Kliner
· Secretary/ Rocky Mountain Regional Director - Santa Tim Mack
· Treasurer/Northeast Regional Director - Santa Tom Zimecki
· Northcentral Regional Director - Santa Carlucci Immediato
· Southcentral Regional Director - Santa John Scheuch
· Southeast Regional Director - Santa Gary Casey
· Southwest Regional Director - Santa Christian Martens
The founding Board had eleven positions and during the initial months two members held double positions. This board began writing by-laws for the organization and began the process of incorporating as a fraternal, non-profit organization.
"AT"
Santa Joe Moore submitted his resignation in March of 2007 after a change in his employment and residency. Nicholas Trolli was proposed by founder Tom Hartsfield and, after review by the board, was appointed as the new External Vice President.
During the next few months, the board’s activities included drafting the articles of incorporation and the bylaws, filing incorporation papers in the State of Montana, where the Board Secretary was a resident, and selecting the site for the 2008 convention and scheduling inspection visits to those locations.
In the bylaws a provision was made to give the founder emeritus, Santa Tom Hartsfield, an honorary, non-voting seat on the board of directors allowing him to attend and participate in all board meetings
At the same time, friction was developing between various board members including Trolli, Connaghan, Kliner and Mack. After one particularly bitter confrontation between Trolli and Kliner, Kliner resigned, stating he did not wish to continue fighting.
Next to engage in confrontation was Trolli and Mack. Unfounded rumors about Mack began to be circulated by Trolli and his cronies.
Then the fighting moved to Connaghan and Trolli. Efforts were made to keep the discussion within the board meeting, but Trolli, assisted by Gary Casey, decided to mount a smear campaign mailing slanderous and false statements regarding Santa Tim Connaghan to the membership. (Some months later, Santa Casey apologized for being part of such a demoralizing smear tactic).
In the meantime, the arguments in the board meetings heated up. Charges of actions unbecoming a board member were made against Trolli. He countered asking for a vote of “no-confidence” against Connaghan. The vote was defeated with the board basically giving Connaghan a vote of confidence.
However, the pressure mounted at future meetings against Connaghan regarding his many business interests. Unfounded claims were made that these were a conflict of interest. How could he justifiably manage an association where hundreds of the members had attended his school and some had worked for him? Ironically, the same was true for Santa Casey, who ran a school in Atlanta; but the attack was directed only at Connaghan.
In July, a motion was passed to give full voting privileges to Santa Tom Hartsfield as the founder emeritus.
In early August of 2007, Santa Tom, upon the urging of Trolli, demanded Santa Tim either divest himself of his businesses or separate from the AORBS.
Although not an ultimatum, Santa Tim respected Santa Tom’s position and feelings for the AORBS. In response, Santa Tim submitted his resignation. He, like Kliner, was tired of all the fighting. He also had a business to run and board activities were demanding too much of his time. Shortly after his resignation, and also due to the infighting within the board, Santas Mack, Immediato, Scheuch and Zimecki, also resigned.
Needless to say, there is no love lost between any of these gentlemen and Trolli.
Within a few weeks Trolli assumed the presidency, appointed new board members and re-incorporated the association in the state of Kentucky. His new vice president was Jeff Germann. The by-laws were also rewritten -- with many of the original provisions -- especially the requirement for annual background checks -- being tossed out. (This, in retrospect, should have been a warning to the board. Discoveries since then have determined Trolli could probably not have passed an obligatory background investigation to qualify for membership).
Santa John Degel -- who assisted Trolli throughout the conflict with public relations and press releases (and coincidentally with composing the attacks on other members) -- was appointed by Trolli to take over his duties as convention coordinator. Degel resigned within weeks when he realized Trolli was falsifying his charges. His membership and participation in the organization "disappeared" and he was later named by Trolli as one of Trolli's top five enemies.
Problems seemed to increase and magnify monthly as the arguments between board members exploded as sections in the by-laws were interpreted by Trolli as giving him the power to expel or ban members from the organization for not accepting his demands for secrecy and obedience to him. One of the first to be removed was the founder Tom Hartsfield. Other officers and board members followed.
Many of the past and present members of the AORBS
group believe these actions were illegal since the members involved were
not notified of the emergency meetings where they were voted out, nor
were they given an opportunity to face their accusers. It has also been
determined Trolli and his cronies did not have a legal quorum to vote to
remove the other officers and directors.
As a result of being summarily dismissed from the organization he
essentially founded, Santa Hartsfield shut down the AORBS website, which
he still owned, and created a new organization for Santas - the IOS, or
International Organization of Santas.
Trolli’s actions escalated, and assisted by Germann,
Trolli banned increasing numbers of members. If members did not agree
with the duo’s ideas or policies, or if a member decided to speak his
mind, he was banned from the group, with no opportunity to speak on his
own behalf.
Trolli’s actions upset many regular members leading to a disorganized,
mass defection from AORBS, accompanied by an equal mass banning of
members opposed to Trolli’s dictatorial leadership.
Probably
the most blatant act and misuse of his position as president was at the
13th annual Founder Luncheon in January 2008.
The luncheon had always been produced and hosted by the Santas in Southern California. As in 2007, this luncheon was hosted by the Orange County members of AORBS at the Knott’s Berry Farm Hotel.
Trolli, in an effort to insure his dominance, banned certain members he did not want attending the luncheon -- including the past president who was to be the luncheon’s guest of honor. To further enforce his power, he hired security guards to prohibit Santa Connaghan and several others from entering the luncheon.
Those actions marked the beginning of Trolli’s downfall. During his speech, many of those in attendance walked out on him -- an act of democratic defiance which was caught live on tape. During his rambling and sometimes incoherent harangue, Trolli falsely accused some of his opponents in the organization with threatening the life of his wife and children -- an empty lie Trolli would employ time and again in the future when asked to explain his conduct against members of AORBS.
Following the luncheon, various regional groups of
Santas around the United States began officially leaving the AORBS. The
first was the Orange County Chapter, which today is officially the home
of FORBS (Fraternal Order of Real Bearded Santas).
Since then 15 other regional groups have formed around the United
States. Most recently, two board members, Chris Martens and Paul Raines,
resigned their positions and announced they were seceding from the
AORBS.
It is estimated at least 90% of the membership has abandoned the AORBS. The membership numbers somewhere between 50 and 70 Santas, with an active core of only 20. It also appears the core leadership consists of Trolli and Germann, directors-at-large Frank Turner and Leonard Ray and director-emeritus Andy Stratton -- a far cry from the original 11-member board established and current 14 member board required by the by-laws. In addition, Trolli’s wife, in a true conflict of interest, has apparently assumed the duties of secretary and treasurer, even though she cannot officially, or legally, hold office in the AORBS.
At his much ballyhooed convention in Kansas City in June of 2008, only 30 Santas, with 10 of their wives, showed up. A major community parade with 750 Santas, a 600 vendor trade-show, two days of classes and workshops, Santa games and other activities promised the members, and the public, never took place. Trolli also defaulted on thousands of dollars in contracts he signed with the Overland Park convention bureau, local hotels and convention vendors.
In communications with current and former members, Trolli has published a list of more than 30 members he accuses of deliberately sabotaging the convention.
Recently Trolli was served a "cease and desist" order by the State of Pennsylvania for repeated violations of law regarding solicitation for funds and misrepresentation as a legal non-profit organization -- additional investigations in Pennsylvania and Kentucky are pending.
A lot has changed since that first meeting in January, 1995, none of it for the betterment of the members of the once proud Amalgamated Order of Real Bearded Santas.
"The Volunteers"
Click here to see a list of the individual Officers, Directors and committee members who have served the AORBS since January of 2007