*HR1515*
Introduced Version
HOUSE
RESOLUTION No. ___
Introduced by: Heine
____________________________________
1 A HOUSE RESOLUTION honoring the late Phil
2 Steigerwald.
3 Whereas, Phil Steigerwald was born on October 21, 1927,
4 in Fort Wayne and passed away on January 15, 2004, at the
5 age of 76;
6 Whereas, He was the owner and broker of Fairfield Realtors,
7 Inc. for 40 years;
8 Whereas, He was heavily involved in his community as a
9 40-year member and soloist of the Plymouth Congregational
10 Church, a soloist at Congregation Achduth Vesholom for 25
11 years, City Councilman for the 5th District of Fort Wayne for
12 eight years, and treasurer of the Republican Party;
13 Whereas, Phil was most well-known as being the longtime
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1 Santa Claus at the historic Wolf and Dessauer department store
2 in downtown Fort Wayne for over 40 years;
3 Whereas, For decades, families in Fort Wayne and
4 surrounding counties would make the yearly trek to the Wolf
5 and Dessauer store to visit Santa Claus, and for many children,
6 this was the one and only Santa;
7 Whereas, During Christmastime, Wolf and Dessauer was
8 known for its wonderful window displays, which garnered
9 national attention;
10 Whereas, Phil had his own local television show called
11 "Santa in Wonderland" on WKJG-TV, and children all over the
12 region would rush to their televisions to see what Santa and his
13 favorite elf, Wee Willie Wand, were up to at that time of year;
14 Whereas, He was inducted into the International Santa Claus
15 Hall of Fame Class of 2023, a project that celebrates, studies,
16 and preserves the historical documentation of the many men
17 and women who have greatly contributed to the legend of Santa
18 Claus around the world;
19 Whereas, Nominations for the International Santa Claus
20 Hall of Fame come from several sources including the
21 communities in which the Santas served, and each candidate is
22 selected by a panel of 15 people who review their career
23 through a list of criteria such as length of service and service
24 to their community; and
25 Whereas, Phil Steigerwald may be gone, but his passion for
26 playing Santa for children all around Fort Wayne will remain
27 forever: Therefore,
28 Be it resolved by the House of Representatives of the
29 General Assembly of the State of Indiana:
30 SECTION 1. That the Indiana House of Representatives
31 honors the late Phil Steigerwald upon his induction into the
32 International Santa Claus Hall of Fame Class of 2023.
33 SECTION 2. That the Principal Clerk of the House of
34 Representatives transmit a copy of this resolution to State
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1 Representative Dave Heine for distribution.
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