December 18 Declared Barney Oldfield Day for 70th Anniversary of Santa Tracker

In a ceremony held on December 2 in the historical Warner Chamber of the State Capitol Building, Nebraska Governor Jim Pillen signed a Proclamation recognizing Thursday, December 18 as Col. Arthur “Barney” Oldfield Day. Senator Bob Hallstrom’s office petitioned the governor for this proclamation due to Oldfield’s role in starting the NORAD “Santa Tracker” service, which marks the 70th year of its existence in 2025.
The "NORAD Santa Tracker" is seen in news reports every Christmas Eve, letting children around the world know that Santa Claus is on his way. But the NORAD Santa Tracker began by mistake. Hallstrom’s legislative aide, Lance Braun, gave some of the background in a speech at the proclamation ceremony:
“It began on December 24, 1955, in a bustling operations center at the Continental Air Defense Command—predecessor to NORAD—in Colorado Springs. A local newspaper ad had printed a wrong number for children to call Santa Claus. Instead of the North Pole, that number connected to Colonel Harry Shoup, the duty officer charged with monitoring Soviet incursions. When a wide-eyed child asked if she was speaking to Santa, Colonel Shoup paused. At first, the colonel considered a gruff response, but his co-worker, Colonel Barney Oldfield, saw an opportunity to spread some holiday cheer and give a young child something much needed at that time…hope.
“In that moment, with Oldfield’s urging, Colonel Shoup chose kindness over protocol. “Yes,” he replied, “and we’re tracking him right now.” Neither Shoup or Oldfield realized then what would happen next. The men rallied their team, and soon, volunteers were fielding calls, updating excited youngsters on Santa’s sleigh—now pinpointed over the North Atlantic, en route with a payload of toys, headed for the eastern seaboard.
“Word spread like wildfire through switchboards overloaded with youthful voices. That first Christmas, thousands of children dialed in, their questions a chorus of innocence: “Where is Rudolph now?” “How fast does the sleigh fly?” In an era defined by duck-and-cover drills and fallout shelters, this tracker became a beacon of normalcy. It transformed NORAD—from a symbol of strategic deterrence into a guardian of holiday magic. Military personnel, hardened by the demands of the Iron Curtain, found themselves poring over maps not for enemy bombers, but for elf-assisted detours around storm clouds. The annual ritual grew, broadcast via radio and television, with real-time updates that turned the family’s living room into mission control.
“Today, as we reflect on that legacy—now digitized and global, reaching millions via apps and live streams—we see its enduring lesson. The NORAD Santa Tracker endures not as a relic of wartime whimsy, but as a testament to resilience. It reminds us that in times of division, a single gesture of goodwill can thaw the coldest fronts. To the children of the Cold War, it gifted four precious minutes of joy on Christmas Eve; to us, it bequeaths a blueprint for hope eternal. Let us carry that spirit forward. In an age of new uncertainties, may we all commit to tracking not just threats, but the wonders that unite us. Merry Christmas, and to all—a good night.”