By Sarah Roebuck
FireRescue1
HALESITE, N.Y. — It’s been 20 years since the movie ‘Elf’ premiered in theaters.
One of the biggest props from the movie found its forever home the Halesite Fire Department in Long Island.
You might be wondering, how did it get there?
The 1-ton, 17-foot long sleigh referred to as the Kringle 3000 in the movie became part of the department’s fleet thanks to Mark Bozek and his wife, Susan, who are local to the area, CBS New York reports.
“We were shocked. I mean, it’s huge,” Larry Northcote, volunteer firefighter and district manager for Halesite Fire District, told CBS New York.
Northcote said Bozek had bid on the sleigh shortly after the movie came out. He wanted the sleigh as a prop for a holiday party he was hosting.
“After the party was over, he didn’t know what to do with it, so he said, I’ll be nice, I’ll donate it to the firehouse,” Northcote told CBS New York.
The sleigh, which sits on display at the fire department throughout the year, has brought joy to Long Islanders for the last 19 years.
“It’s actually became, like, a landmark. We have people coming down here all the time, taking pictures in front of it, doing their Christmas cards,” James Costanzo, lieutenant hook and ladder with Halesite Fire Department, told CBS New York.
The Kringle 3000 is equipped with lights and takes part in the Huntington Holiday Parade Route every year. Parade-goers can see Buddy the Elf on board, which Northcote has played for the past 10 years.
The sleigh made a special return back to New York City for the first time in 20 years on Sunday. Bozek made the arrangement and New York State Police escorted the sleigh from its home at the Halesite Fire Department all the way to Manhattan, NBC New York reports.
“I am a huge believer in discreetly giving out smiles,” Bozek told NBC New York. “In these not-so-great times that we’re living in, if you can gesture something that’s going to bring happiness and smiles for a moment, you should.”