The American St. Nick

The American Saint Nick tells the true story of a handful of GI's who brought Christmas back to a freshly liberated small Luxembourg town caught up in WWII.

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This is a great special. It was a wonderful discovery. What was great to me was the fact that we get many "Full Circle" moments. These moments really hit home on how "Christmas Time" is special for many reasons. What is amazing is the fact that even though kindness has its own rewards we see how acts of kindness trigger more acts of kindness. This is one of those specials you will never forget.

Even decades after they happen, some acts of kindness have such an effect on people (or an entire community) that they are remembered by all who inhabit a particular area. This documentary is the true story of Corporal Richard Brookins; a US soldier during the Second World War who (to this day) is idolized by a town in Luxembourg. The story goes that by 1944, the tiny country of Luxembourg had been under Nazi rule for 4 long years. Aside from having their language banned, being made to swear loyalty to Hitler and being forced to serve in the German army, Luxembourgers were also not allowed to hold their traditional St. Nicholas Day celebration. Eventually, American troops arrive to the town of Wiltz, and the 28th Infantry Division is in the thick of it. It is this division that corporal Brookins is a part of, and some friends of his begin organizing a holiday celebration to mark the liberation of the town. After enlisting the assistance of the local priest (as well as using his vestments), Brookins is transformed into St. Nicholas. In December 1944, he rides through Wiltz in a jeep, asks children what they want for Christmas, and gives out candy. Nobody wanted the celebration to end, but sadly, Hitler's last major offensive of the war, the Battle of the Bulge, had started. This plan was a last ditch attempt by the germans to drive a wedge through the Allied lines and make a dash for the Belgian port of Antwerp. It was hoped that capturing it would halt allied supply lines and force them to the bargaining table. When the germans retake Wiltz this time, the occupation isn't as brutal as before, since they are mostly concerned with steamrolling towards Antwerp as fast as possible. Still, german forces occupy Wiltz and american air power is forced to push them back by devastating the city. Most of Wiltz is destroyed, but Brookins' portrayal of St. Nick gave them the hope they needed to survive. After the war, Brookins returns to New York and gets married, and for over 30 years, nobody really reached out to him. Eventually in 1977, Frank McClelland, one of Brookins' former army friends, contacts him and says the citizens of Wiltz have been wanting him to return there for a long time. Brookins shows up in a helicopter and lands in Wiltz for the first time since world war 2, surprised to learn the whole town has been rebuilt. He reprises his appearance as St. Nicholas, gives autographs, and witnesses a speech from civilians who say they never gave up on him or forgot what he did for their small community. A castle built in the 1200s hosted a big party. Well into the new millennium, Richard continued to go back to Wiltz and even had a statue dedicated to him. He died in late 2018 at the age of 96, but as long as there are residents of Wiltz who remember him, he won't fade from history. It's been said a person only actually dies when they are forgotten, and this is an example of that. Someone from the town even told Brookins that if Luxembourg lives another 1000 years, his story of how he reintroduced an important tradition will still be told. Overall, this was a nice film to see since it shows how much respect a person can garner just by doing something that has great significance to a town's people. Until Brookins showed up, life was very hard for people in luxembourg, but he showed everyone that the bad times won't go on forever.