Mrs. Claus, Tiffany Silva, District 2 Supervisor Bruce Gibson, and Santa, David Nygren. Silva is the new Mrs. Claus replacing Della Carillo who played the Christmas legend for about 30 years. Photo by Danna Dykstra-Coy
When children and big kids in Cayucos visited with Santa and Mrs. Claus this year, they may have seen the start of a new tradition in the town, a new person playing the part of Mrs. Claus.
Tiffany Silva, a Cayucos native, former school board member, and active community member, who is the reigning “Mayor of Cayucos,” stepped into the part that had been played by her dear friend Della Carrillo, for some 30 years.
Carrillo also donned an Easter Bunny costume and greeted children for many years at the Lioness Club’s Annual Easter Egg Hunt at Hardie Park.
“I’ve known Della the majority of my life,” Silva told Estero Bay News. “Her dad, Ben Carrillo, had a very special place in my heart. He was a member of the Lions Club and was thought of as the ‘heart and soul’ of the community.”
When EBN published a story about Silva taking over for Della in the Santa’s House this year (Dec. 4 issue), she was unavailable to contribute to the article. After we went to print, she contacted a reporter and asked if we could give her a chance to express her deep love of Della and how much it touched her to be asked to take her place. We agreed.
Silva and her husband Frank are both SLO County natives. She’s a ninth generation and her children and grandchildren are the 10th and 11th generations of their family.
She served on the Chamber of Commerce Board for many years and in 2024 finished off a 9-1/2 year stint on the Coast Unified School District Board of Trustees.
As for the Mayor moniker, back in 2008 there was a contest for Honorary Mayor, she explained. Whoever raised the most money to pay for the balloon arches that used to span Ocean Avenue for the Independence Day Parade would be pronounced Honorary Mayor. She won.
Silva said it came with an official plaque and the key to the city, and since they haven’t had another contest since then, she laughs, she’s still the Honorary Mayor.
“My motto was — ‘Local Girl Makes Good,’” she said. “It was fun, good, clean fun.”
In another of her many acts of service, Silva said she was a member of the Lioness Club for many years. That’s where her and Della became really close.
The Lionesses “Were like a family to me,” Silva said. Della had a circle of friends that looked after her as her health started to fail. She loved to play marbles.
“Marbles,” Silva said, “she had a pure look of joy when she won.” That was the first time Della asked her to take up the roles.
“We had conversations,” Silva said, “and she asked me to take over as Mrs. Claus. I said I would but not the Easter Bunny.”
She’d filled in once before, in 2020 when Della was out of town for the big Cayucos Downtown Christmas celebration. “It was truly eye-opening,” Silva said. The kids were wonderful and she saw a lot of local folks she didn’t see much of.
And though those crazy days included everyone wearing facemasks because of the COVID pandemic rules, she couldn’t fool one youngster.
“My grandson said, ‘Nana, is that you? Your voice sure sounds like my Nana’s voice,’” Silva laughs.
Right before Della died, Silva said she called her from the hospital to remind her about Mrs. Claus, Silva recalled.
So, after Della passed, she reached out to the Rotary Club, which sponsors Santa’s House, and the Chamber of Commerce, which sponsors the overall event and asked if she could fulfill Della’s wishes, and they said yes. She called it a “God-wink” or “Something that’s meant to be.”
And Santa Claus this year is a familiar fellow, Dave Nygren, Principal at Santa Lucia Middle School in Cambria. “We worked together on the school board,” Silva said. “That makes it more special.”
So is this a one-off or does she plan on a long run? “I hope to do it for as long as I can. I hope to start a new tradition for me and my family.”
