Santa hat under attack

A Commack School District bus driver says he nearly lost his job because he refused to take off his Santa Claus cap while driving his route.

With his long white beard and generous midriff, 65-year-old Kenneth Mott bears more than a passing resemblance to St. Nick. The Bayport resident says he has been wearing his furry red-and-white hat every December since he started working for the Baumann and Sons bus company, which transports students in the Commack School District, five years ago.

But after Mott completed his morning route on Thursday, shuttling kids to Rolling Hills Primary School and Commack Middle School, he said his supervisors at Baumann and Sons called and demanded that he take off his Santa hat.

Mott said he was told that a parent of a child complained to the district about Mott's headgear, saying that the child doesn't believe in Santa Claus and was bothered by the hat.

"I said, 'What, are you kidding me?,'" Mott recalled. "I thought it was a big joke."

He resolved to keep his hat on that afternoon.

"Nobody is going to tell me what I can do and can't do," said Mott, who added that he doesn't pretend to be Santa Claus while driving, nor does he play Christmas carols or decorate his bus. "This is America. I'm not hurting anybody."

Benedict Pressimone, who also drives a bus for Baumann, bought his own Santa hat to wear on his route after he heard the story.

"This is ridiculous," said Pressimone, of Holbrook. "We have to make a stand."

But Mott said that after he told parents that Friday might be his last day on the job because of the hat, supervisors suddenly had a change of heart and told him he could wear the hat after all.

Representatives of Baumann and Sons did not return calls for comment Monday.

Commack School District Superintendent James Feltman said he told the district's transportation supervisor that the hat could stay since it was not a religious object, was not distracting to the driver, and didn't interfere with the driver's duties.

Feltman said he received one call from a parent, in support of Mott and his hat.

Michele Morley, a member of the Rolling Hills PTA, said Mott "always" has worn his hat on his route. "The kids point him out: 'Look, there's Santa,'" she said.

Feltman called the dispute a misunderstanding of the district's policies, which allow everything from menorah ties to Christmas sweaters to Halloween costumes.

"On Halloween, do we tell teachers and staff and drivers not to wear Halloween outfits?" Feltman asked. "During holidays, do we tell teachers they can't wear sweaters that have Christmas trees?

"I think it comes mostly under the category of misunderstanding," he said.

Even though the dispute apparently is over, Mott said the issue has soured his holiday season.

"They sure took a lot of the joy out of my Christmas," he said.

Santa Hat gets to stay!
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