Keep the spirit all year.
That was the incantation Rusty Bausch took up when his graying beard and hair, paired with his fun-loving personality, gave him the persona of Santa Claus, which he embodied wholly, said his wife, Vickie Joiner Bausch of Dacula.
“He wanted to keep the spirit of Santa alive for children and adults,” she said. “When people would ask if he ever got tired of playing Santa he always said, ‘I don’t play, I am Santa.’ He lived it.”
Born on Christmas Eve in 1948, Christmastime was an undeniably important part of Rusty Bausch’s life. Just as every Santa does, Bausch found happiness in bringing joy to others, and his beard was a year-long fixture that drew constant attention, his wife said.
“Like magnets, children just went to him,” she said. “He would always keep his heard because he loved being recognized. He absolutely loved being Santa.”
William Robert Noel “Rusty” Bausch, of Dacula, died May 2 from complications of brain cancer at Peachtree Christian Hospice in Duluth. He was 65.
A visitation is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday and a memorial service will immediately follow at 4 p.m. at Tom M. Wages Funeral Home in Snellville, which was in charge of cremation arrangements.
Bausch, who most recently worked in sales at B&D Industrial, began personifying his Santa character eight years ago and had been an honorary Santa for everything from private parties to corporate Christmases. He never grew tired of playing the part, and he was always prepared for a run-in with children, said longtime friend, Jerri Tatum.
"He always had his pockets stuffed with candy and toys for kids," she said. "The kids' eyes would get so wide and you could hear them whisper to their parents, 'is that him?' It was so fun to watch."
In the summer months, in addition to his curly white hair and long beard, Bausch often sported his favorite Hawaiian shirt. Red and green, and decorated with a multitude of surfing Santas, the shirt was the perfect addition to Bausch’s all-things-fun attitude, Tatum said.
“If you ran into him out and about in town, he’d be in that red and green Hawaiian shirt,” she said with a laugh. “Anything he could do to make people smile. That was just his personality.”
Staying true to his character, Bausch was a member of organizations such as The Fraternal Order of Real Bearded Santas, and even ran the AJC Peachtree Road Race dressed in red and green – miniature candy canes filling his pockets, his wife said.
According to those who knew him, it was Bausch’s quick smile and infectious joy that made him so good at being Santa, and his kind, child-like spirit brought happiness to so many people, Vickie Bausch said.
“He would find so much joy in everything he did whether it was working or playing,” she said. “He was very special to a lot of people and very loved by so many.”
In addition to his wife, Bausch is survived by a daughter, Meridith Smith of Dacula; a son, Michael Bausch of Seattle; two sisters, Ann Marie Hammond and Laura Melendez, both of Fort Walton Beach, Fla.; one brother, Sandy Bausch, also of Fort Walton Beach; and four grandchildren.
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