Children's Reading At LeGrand's Woodbridge Coffee Shop Dec. 17

WOODBRIDGE, NJ — A New Jersey mom wrote and published a children's book about Santa Claus — and Woodbridge's own Eric LeGrand is the inspiration for one of the characters in her book.

M.B. (her nickname, it stands for Mary Beth) Paradise's book is called "Beach Santa," and she will do a reading at LeGrand's coffee shop in Woodbridge Dec. 17.

All children and their parents are welcome to attend and do a Santa-inspired craft — plus enjoy some of LeGrand's excellent coffee and pastries.

Fittingly for Jersey, "Beach Santa" is about what Santa Claus does after Christmas, after he's delivered all the presents and flown around the world in his sleigh.

"Santa is exhausted and needs a vacation," said Paradise, 51. "He heads south for some sun and his main goal is just to catch a fish. In the end, he ends up catching something very different instead!"

Author visit and book signing at LeGrand coffeehouse:
Sat. December 17
11:30 a.m. -12:30
10 Green Street, Woodbridge

The book is a heartwarming story with unique illustrations. Parents can grab a cup of bELieve coffee while M.B. describes the inspiration behind this story, reads the book and provides some "Beach Santa"-inspired crafts. Geared towards ages 3-8.

Paradise is a Manasquan resident, where she lives with her husband and three children.

She graduated from Rutgers University, and in her work as an athletic trainer she has met LeGrand several times. Like so many, she was greatly moved by his story. It was during a 2010 Rutgers-Army game that LeGrand took a hard hit and suffered a traumatic spinal cord injury. He is now paralyzed and uses a wheelchair.

She also modeled one of the characters in her book after LeGrand; look for the child on the beach who uses a wheelchair.

"I saw him in his wheelchair and I really thought about how every single thing in life is hard for him. Then I read this past year that Eric just opened up his own coffee shop in Woodbridge. I realized that if he can do something like that, I can finish this book!"

Also, Paradise is donating 25 percent of all her book's proceeds to Team LeGrand, a fundraising arm of the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, which looks for treatments and cures for spinal cord injuries.

Initial Patch story: Manasquan Mom Writes Children's Book, 'Beach Santa' (Nov. 22)