Title and statement of responsibility area
Title proper
Jimmy Lomax fonds
General material designation
Parallel title
Other title information
Title statements of responsibility
Title notes
Level of description
Fonds
Reference code
Edition area
Edition statement
Edition statement of responsibility
Class of material specific details area
Statement of scale (cartographic)
Statement of projection (cartographic)
Statement of coordinates (cartographic)
Statement of scale (architectural)
Issuing jurisdiction and denomination (philatelic)
Dates of creation area
Date(s)
-
1935-2010 (Creation)
Physical description area
Physical description
144 cm of textual and graphic materials.
997 photographs: 906 col.; 91 b&w, 4 contact sheets
1 framed painting: oil on canvas; 32 x 22 cm.
3 drawings.
17 objects: 14 plaques, 1 crest, 1 button, 1 ribbon.
Publisher's series area
Title proper of publisher's series
Parallel titles of publisher's series
Other title information of publisher's series
Statement of responsibility relating to publisher's series
Numbering within publisher's series
Note on publisher's series
Archival description area
Name of creator
Biographical history
James (Jimmy) William Lomax (1943-2011), was best known as Hamilton's Santa Claus. As a child, Jimmy spent many Christmases in the hospital because of a lung disease that doctors originally diagnosed as likely being fatal. While in the hospital, a visit from Santa changed his young life. Jimmy survived his lung disease and it was this second chance at life that inspired him to become Santa to other less fortunate people, especially children. After attending Delta Secondary School, Jimmy worked as a steelworker at Stelco to support his family and to help support his volunteer job as Santa Claus. He and his wife Susan, who was often referred to as Mrs. Claus, would volunteer their time to a project they called Operation Santa Claus. Along with their young son Ryan, they visited thousands of children and adults annually, distributing gifts and holiday cheer. Jimmy's role as Santa began as a teenager in 1958 with a small bag of candy, a Santa suit and a big heart. Over the years, Operation Santa Claus grew to become a full-scale operation with numerous volunteers and donors. From 1958 until 2010, Lomax volunteered countless hours to fundraise for Operation Santa Claus, raising thousands of dollars annually to buy presents for those in need. The recipients of his generosity were mostly low-income families, children with intellectual challenges, hospital patients, group home residents, nursing home residents, and individuals living in shelters.
Jimmy's selfless dedication and generosity to his community earned him awards and recognition, including the Outstanding Young Hamiltonian Award, the Ontario Medal for Good Citizenship, the Queen's Jubilee Medal, as well as membership in the Order of Canada. Even after the death of his son Ryan in 1987, as well as his own health issues, Lomax's dedication to Operation Santa Claus never wavered until he was forced to retire the role in 2010 due to health complications, after more than 5 decades as Santa. Lomax retired from Stelco after 38 years and he died in 2011. The city of Hamilton honoured him by establishing the Jimmy Lomax Beach Boulevard Park near where he and his family lived. However, Lomax's true legacy as Hamilton's Santa lives forever in the minds and hearts of many Hamiltonians, who personally experienced his kindness and generosity during the holiday season.
Custodial history
The material in the fonds was donated to the Hamilton Public Library, Local History & Archives department by Bob Boyter on behalf of Susan Lomax, wife of James (Jimmy) Lomax, on June 12, 2013.
Scope and content
The material in the fonds consists of predominantly textual and graphic materials and includes 17 objects. The fonds contains 7 series including, correspondence, newspaper clippings, publicity, artwork, photographs, scrapbooks, and awards and recognition such as certificates of congratulations, invitations, awards night programs, and plaques, all pertaining to Jimmy Lomax, his family and Operation Santa Claus, which helped raise money annually to distribute toys and other items to less fortunate children and individuals during the Christmas season.
Notes area
Physical condition
Good
Immediate source of acquisition
Fonds was donated to the Local History & Archives department in June of 2013 by Bob Boyter on behalf of Susan Lomax.
Arrangement
The material in the fonds originally consisted of 23 photograph albums and 1 scrapbook. When the decision was made to remove the material for preservation purposes, this altered the original order and arrangement of material (in scrapbook format), that had been chosen by the creator, and a new arrangement of materials with more series was created.
The photographs in the fonds have been arranged by subject and then by date, and have been given a reference code for identification purposes. The letter s on the end of a code signifies that the photograph is smaller in size, while the letter L on the end of a code signifies the photograph is large (8 x 10-inch size or larger).
Language of material
Script of material
Location of originals
Availability of other formats
None
Restrictions on access
Terms governing use, reproduction, and publication
Records are in the public domain. There are no restrictions on reproduction for research and private study.
Preferred citation: Jimmy Lomax fonds, 01031, Hamilton Public Library, Hamilton, Ontario.
Finding aids
File list available.
Associated materials
The following related material can be found in the Local History & Archives (LH&A) department at Hamilton Public Library pertaining to the Jimmy Lomax fonds:
Jimmy Lomax Scrapbooks, Volumes 1 and 2. Library Call Number: RB LOMAX LOM.
Accruals
Further accruals are not expected.
General note
Title is based on the contents of the Jimmy Lomax fonds.
Alternative identifier(s)
Standard number area
Standard number
Access points
Subject access points
Place access points
Name access points
Genre access points
Control area
Description record identifier
Institution identifier
Rules or conventions
Status
Final
Level of detail
Full
Dates of creation, revision and deletion
Fonds processed and finding aid created by archives technician Kelly Bucci, 2019.