Santa's surprise
MUDDY CREEK TWP — When Natalie Karns, 7, spied a bright red mailbox labeled “Santa” on a table at Lowe's in Butler, she figured it was a way to communicate with the Big Guy.
So, the enterprising youngster grabbed the top copy from a nearby stack of Lowe's checklists, which are meant for customers to tick off items or projects for which they would like a price quote.
Initially disappointed at the “roofing,” “plumbing,” “flooring” and other entries on the list, Natalie finally came upon “outdoor play sets.”So, she wrote her name at the top, checked the “play set” box and put down her mother and father's cell phone numbers on the appropriate line.“The next day, Lowe's called me and said, 'Mr. Karns, would you like a quote for a swingset?'” said Natalie's father, Matthew Karns.When he discovered that Natalie had filled out a checklist thinking they were Santa letter templates, he laughed and explained the situation to the amused Lowe's representative.
Thinking the whole adorable incident was over, the family went on with their Christmas planning and festivities.But Lowe's wasn't so quick to give up on the little girl's wish.Natalie's mother, Kim Karns, received a call the next day from Cayla Francis, assistant store manager at the Butler Lowe's, who told Karns that she was touched by Natalie's request and wanted to get her a free play set.“I was thinking there has to be something Lowe's can do,” Francis recalled. “She wanted a play set and she thought she was filling out a Christmas list for Santa.”Francis said she talked to her store manager, who told her to call the in-home services department at Lowe's corporate office to see if a play set could be donated.Francis did so, and the corporate employee called Heartland, a manufacturer of the play sets sold by Lowe's.“Then I got an email from Heartland that they were all in and to give them a call,” Francis said.The wheels were put into motion to deliver to the Karns home an outdoor play set that has side-by-side slides, two swings, a monkey bar, a fort, chalkboard, telescope, a spy glass, ladder and sandbox.
Francis said the set retails for about $4,000, and Heartland installers usually charge about $200 for installation on top of that.Heartland donated the play set, and Lowe's paid for the installation, for which Heartland only charged $200.Francis even dressed up as an elf for the delivery to the Karns home on East Portersville Road, where Matthew Karns had taken Natalie and Jackson, 3, for a ride while the play set was erected.Once they arrived back home, Francis told Natalie that she, one of Santa's elves, had heard she wanted the play set and Santa and Lowe's made it happen.
“If you could have seen their faces,” Francis said of the two tots' reaction to their new play set. “It was the cutest thing.”The family was stunned at the generosity shown them.“Cayla said, 'Since a 7-year-old believes in Santa, I wanted her to have her wish,'” Kim Karns recalled. “I was very surprised and touched.”“I was amazed,” said Matthew Karns. “With everything going on right now, it's good to know there are people who do nice things for each other.”Most impressed of all was Natalie, who can't wait for springtime to spend her days racing Jackson down the slides.“I was so happy,” said a beaming Natalie. “I think it's really cool.”Francis agreed with the Karns that because of the coronavirus pandemic, 2020 has been a challenge, especially since she was diagnosed with a rare medical condition in recent months.The 18-year Lowe's employee said the donation of the play set lifted her from the doldrums.“It's been a little bit of a struggle for me,” Francis said of 2020. “So, at that moment, when the kids saw the play set, it really made me believe again that there's some good left right now.”
