CC: Here is a feature by Harry Rosenthai of Associated Press. It says: from Rouston. Twc Santas brighten the Christmas Eve for 2-ye:r-old Jeffrey The first one knocked on h..s front door Lovell. and brought presents. The second s'.arted his -- ~. i : -- l L ?age 8 daddy home from the moon. The first wore a red suit and a white beard and ho, ho'd loud enough to be heard doun the block. The second was a huge engine spitting flame behind the moon, ma thousands of people were awaiting word that it had fired. -"Please be informed that there is a Santa Claus" were t.le first -. - vords from Apollo 8 as it emerged from radio silence to inform an anxious world I.5 minutes the fact that the engine had performed after its critical burn. "None of & eve* expect to have a better Christmas present than this one ,I( said Ken Mattingly of Mission Control. "Thank everyone on the ground for U.S. You know we couldn't have done it withoIL you,It came the reply from Cal, Prank Barman, the spacecraft commander. At this pain%, a Christmas tree came aglow in front of the consoles in Mission Control, ma Astronaut harrison Schmidt read a space version of "A visit from Saint Nicholas" to the crew. "Tuas the night before out Christmas, and way in space, the Apollo 8 crew had just won the moon race," i= began. The Mission Control crew had de1aye.i the celebration until Jeffrey's daddy, Javy Captain - uy- _- .-.~-:“._.. .I_. ^__ .-_..._ . _ Page A. Anders and Col. Borman were safely on their way home. Any other Christmas Eve, the families of the astronauts would have been in church for Christmas services, but this.year they were all glued to their television sets. The homes all near the Manned Spacecraft Center were decorated. The lawns around the Love11 home ant throughout his community of Timber Cove were lined with Mexicti style luminaries, and the four Love11 children came out to light them about 7~30. They were just in time. At 8:OQ, a car t'rve up carrying e tall Santa Claus uith a Large sack on his back. He ho hold up to the loor and knocked loudly. It opened, and there stood Jeffrey Love11 who will be 3 on Januxy 14. Jeffrey recoiled at the sight. His mother held him up, and Jeffrey clung to her, s-.ill shying away. "Last year he ran away crying-," saying his old sister Barbara. Earlier, she 15-year had to run after him to prevent his blowing out all the luminaries. The other ‘.ovell children, 13-year-old James and lo-year-old Stsan watched with great amusement. Finally, the Santa and the children disappeared inside; thts presents ,. were put under the tree; presents not to be opened until today. Mts. Love11 prepared egg nog and cookies for the guests, and they watched a 25-minute televised tour of the moon conducted by the three astronauts. Later, fri.ends took Mrs. Lovell, Barbara, and Jeffrey on a tour of the neighborhood brightly lighted for Christmas. Above them in a clear sky, the quarter moon shone brightly, and the three astronauts, who more than any other men have seen the fruits of creation, pause in their scientific exploration there to beam to the earth the majestic word; from Genesis. "And God created the firmament heavens, and God called the dry land Earth, and God ;aw that it was good. ” /