Six-year-old Eve Taylor loves our green delivery vans – she calls them "apple vans" – so she was thrilled when Santa and his elves turned up in one at a special festive party at our Brierley Hill store in Dudley.
Eve got the chance to sit in the cab before joining Santa and other children for food, games and presents in the store's cafe.
Her mum Lisa said: "It was really emotional, I was filling up. Because everyone makes her feel so comfortable in the store, it's the first time in nearly seven years she's been able to get close to Santa and feel comfortable around him. It's made her Christmas, she was over the moon.
"It was so touching – one of those moments you'll always remember. Thank you to everyone at Asda who made it possible."
Eve, who has Down's Syndrome and alopecia, has joined Lisa on her regular shopping trips to the store since she was a baby and enjoys chatting to the store's community champion Emma Flavell, who organised the party, and her colleagues in the store.
Emma, who dressed up as Mrs Santa for the day, said: "Everyone had such a brilliant day, it genuinely was magical.
"Eve and all of the children loved seeing Santa. I had so much great feedback from parents saying their children loved the party."
Lisa says Eve was really excited to see Santa arrive for the party in an Asda van.
She said: "She now thinks Santa's swapped his sleigh for an Asda van! She got a present, made gingerbread men and wrote a letter to Santa too.
"A few months ago we were driving back from school and there was an Asda van in front of us – she calls them 'apple vans' because they often have pictures of apples on the side of them. She became a bit obsessed with it and wanted me to follow it! Now, she always points out the vans when she sees them.
"She also has an Asda bag for life with an apple on it which she takes everywhere with her.
"We've been going into the Brierley Hill store since she was a baby. It's nice and open, she feels comfortable there and the staff have got to know her and make a fuss of her. They're all really friendly.
"We pull into the car park and she says 'yay – Asda!'. We go there three or four times a week.
"Her speech isn't brilliant but she always says hello to the staff and they say hello back."
Eve lives in nearby Quarry Bank with Lisa, dad Paul and older brother and sister Jack and Grace.
