'It means the world to me': Santa visits remote communities in northern Sask.

Athabasca Basin -

Santa Claus swapped his sleigh for an airplane, and delivered about 1,380 packages to children in some of Saskatchewan’s remote communities on Friday.

He teamed with Rise Air for the 22nd annual Santa in the North, and went more than 1,800 km to visit students in the Athabasca Region, including the Wollaston and Hatchet Lake area, Stony Rapids, Black Lake First Nation, and Fond Du Lac.

Nine-year-old Daisy Joseyounen attends Father Megret Elementary School in Hatchet Lake. She enjoyed her present but said meeting Santa was the highlight of her day.

“It means the world to me,” she told CTV News in an interview.

Children on the nice list received an orange, a toy, and a book, most of which were written by Indigenous authors.

“Every kid deserves to see themselves reflected in the stories that they read, that’s why it’s important that Indigenous kids read Indigenous stories,” Santa said in an interview with CTV News.

“It sparks their interest, ‘Hey if I’m creative, I can be an author as well, and put my culture in it,’ ” said Ashley Strong, who ordered the books on behalf of Athabasca Basin Development.

Christina Clarke is a teacher in the Stony Rapids area and has seen Santa visit for the past two decades, she said the novelty doesn’t wear off.

“It’s not about the value of the gift, it’s about having Santa come into our community,” Clarke told CTV News.

“We’re kind of lucky to have him up here,” said 13-year-old Avery Macdonald from Stony Rapids Community School.

“Every moment that it took, every hour that it took for the team of people to come together, it’s been truly honour and a pleasure to do,” said Dan Gold with Rise Air.