At Christmas, Rick Dickerson puts on a Santa suit and listens as kids tell him what they want. But the Granite City man never claims he's Santa.

"I always inform them that I'm just one of Santa's helpers, and that he has plenty of helpers that work throughout the country, and that no one person could do it all in one night," said Dickerson, 55, who is in his third year as a Santa's helper for Granite City's Santa's Holiday Avenue Parade Committee.

The last two years, the city building inspector held court in a mobile building in the Bellemore Village Shopping Center. This year, he's at a new Santa's House, in the former Guardian Bank Building, 1939 Edison Ave.

We caught up with Dickerson at the Santa's House and asked him about life as a Santa's helper.

Question: What do you like about being a Santa's helper?

Answer: I really enjoy the kids. It's a fun experience to try to talk with them and find out who their teacher is and who their principal is and just kind of make them feel comfortable and have fun with them.

Q: What are the most popular gifts kids are asking for?

A: Even the little kids are asking for iPhones and iPads and computer games and computer gadgets that I don't think I could even operate at my age.

Q: Is the economy affecting their requests?

A: It obviously is, and you're seeing more and more parents that are trying to do more with less. It seems like more so this year than any other time.

Q: Do parents sometimes signal you to discourage higher priced gifts?

A: Sometimes the parents will let you know real quick to wave off the high-dollar stuff and to explain that we have to do little things this year to make for a good Christmas.

Q: Do they ever ask for things for others?

A: There are some that do that. Some stories that you hear are very touching. They'll tell you about a cousin or somebody that maybe has lost a family member or their dog died or that they just don't have anything, and they hope they get some toys this year. Sometimes it can pull on you pretty good.

Q: What do you say to those who tell you they don't believe in Santa Claus?

A: I cautiously will say to them, "You really need to be careful not to believe in Santa Claus, because Santa Claus is real. Even at my age, I believe in Santa Claus."

Q: What's the strangest request you ever received?

A: I had a girl two years ago ask me for a pink horse. A real horse that was pink. I told her we'd do the best that we could but I didn't know where there were any pink horses available right now.

Contact reporter Jim Merkel at 618-344-0264, ext. 138