Game organizers are calling for a special meeting to move forward with plans for the Reindeer Games in Donner’s absence. Donner has yet to return to the North Pole. Most of Santa’s reindeer returned months ago.

The Reindeer Operations Department, Elf Victor and Santa have yet to comment about the special request.

Donner is Santa’s lead reindeer and very little gets done with the reindeer in the run up to Christmas without his involvement — including the Reindeer Games.

The Reindeer Games are typically held around the first week of December, so Donner’s absence so far has not been a critical issue. But game organizers are feeling anxious that Donner is not yet here. A key meeting that was supposed to be held last Monday was postponed until Donner’s return.

“We cannot go forward with things they way they are,” said Elf Nancy Waddle, a key elf who is part of the Reindeer Games Organizing Committee.

“We need to get scheduled. We need to lay out courses. We need to plan for trials and preliminaries. We need to get reindeer medical evaluations and those reindeer need to be conditioning now. Reindeer Games are not built in a day and we’re running out of time. We don’t need Donner here to do all that stuff. But all that stuff needs to happen and it needs to happen in the next couple of weeks” Elf Nancy said.

Santa has repeatedly said for more than two months that Donner’s delayed arrival was not a concern. He has told all elves “not to worry” about Donner’s absence. We assume that direction is also given to the Reindeer Games Organizing Committee.

This is the first public signal of unhappiness about Donner’s situation. Up to now, it has merely been a matter of rumor that elves were feeling anxious about his absence.

We will keep you posted, of course.