In Scranton, a Firefighter Was Santa Claus to Hundreds of Children

Scranton, Penn.–For years, area children knew him as Santa Claus. Each year, he donned a red suit, white beard and black boots and listened to the Christmas wishes of hundreds of boys and girls. But to everyone else, Luther Bender was a dedicated firefighter and civic-minded member of his community.

He came to Scranton with his parents, the Rev. John and Barbara Bender, at the age of 19 months. His father took a position as pastor of St. Mark’s Lutheran Church in West Scranton, where Luther grew up. As a young man, Luther Bender was appointed to the Scranton Fire Bureau on June 1, 1928. His would be a long and noteworthy career. His hard work and devotion to duty earned him a promotion to lieutenant in 1938. Within months, he resigned his post and was appointed fire inspector. Then, in 1942, Mayor Howard J. Snowdon took office and demoted Mr. Bender, who was reassigned as a private.

In 1948, the Fire Bureau responded to the city’s need by starting an ambulance service. Luther Bender was assigned to that unit, where he administered first aid, transported people with injuries and illnesses and performed other humanitarian services in the line of duty. Later in his career, he recalled one of the most challenging situations he ever found himself in.

A man somehow became impaled on a picket fence on Blakely Street in Dunmore, and Mr. Bender had to act fast to stop the bleeding. “I had to hold my fist in the wound from the time we removed him from the fence until we got to the hospital,” he told The Scranton Times. “And brother, that’s no fun,” he said.

Another time, he had to confront a revolver-toting husband while trying to administer aid to the wife who had been injured in a family brawl. His later duties as fire inspector seemed tame by comparison, he said.

In 1955, Mr. Bender was again promoted to lieutenant by Mayor James T. Hanlon, along with fellow ambulance crewman Jack E. Pitman. The ambulance crew responded to an increasing number of calls each year since its beginning, repeatedly earning praise for its work. The ambulance service operated 24 hours a day. The previous year, 1954, it responded to a record 2,270 calls. With the promotions, each time it responded to a call, it would have an officer on board.

Lt. Bender again took the role of fire inspector in 1963, this time to fill in for Nat P. Duffy, who was on sick leave. The following year, in January 1964, Mayor William T. Schmidt, after a conference with Public Safety Director George Davis and Fire Superintendent Clayton Canterbury, named him permanently to the post.

But Lt. Bender did not confine his dedication to his work. He extended it to other parts of his community. In 1938, he a served as chairman of the Luther Day dinner. Sponsored by the Lutheran parishes of the Lackawanna Valley, the annual dinner commemorated the anniversary of the birth of Protestant reformer Martin Luther. 1938 marked the 455th anniversary. In 1941, Lt. Bender’s home parish, St. Mark’s in West Scranton, celebrated its golden jubilee. Mr. Bender served as chairman of the financial committee. Each year, the Scranton Fire Department held its benefit ball. In 1947, Lt. Bender served as chairman of the program committee.

After 42 years of service, Luther Bender retired from the fire department. Retirement did not slow him down. The Fireman’s Association of Pennsylvania elected him senior vice president in 1973. The following year, he became the organization’s president.

At the time of his retirement, Luther Bender had been donning his Santa suit for 12 years, he said – although his wife disagreed. She said he had been doing it for 15 years. Either way, to hundreds of area children, Luther Bender was Santa Claus.