NATCHEZ — Saturday, Santa made a special early trip into town to meet a few lucky girls and boys.

Grace United Methodist Church had their annual breakfast with Santa, which Beth Ann Dudley said has been a service the church provides to the community every year.

“We really use this to start the Christmas season,” she said.

During the breakfast, church volunteers feed the children and their parents pancakes and sausage, sing Christmas carols and then a special visitor — Santa — arrives.

After reading a story, Santa distributed gift bags to all of the children.

And while it’s fun to have Kris Kringle around, the breakfast doesn’t miss the real reason for the season, Barbara Winkworth said.

“It’s not just about Santa,” she said. “We also like to emphasize that it’s about the religious aspect of the holiday.”

While they finished their breakfasts, two friends who have never missed the breakfast their entire lives — John Walker Young and Cooper Alan Wells, both 3 — were getting antsy.

“I’m going to ask Santa for a dump truck, the red kind,” Walker said.

And Wells knew how he would identify Santa.

“He’s big. He’s fat,” he said. “His reindeers are all going to fly up on his sleigh.”

When it came time for carols, the last song would “Here Comes Santa Claus,” Dudley said.

“It makes him come,” she said. “It’s magic.