By Andy Spearman
Santa and I have been bumping into each other quite a lot in recent days. It happens every year and he keeps promising to buy me a pint.
I met him in West Street on Saturday when he was helping to collect funds for the Drogheda Homeless Aid charity Christmas sleepout.
“Howaya Andy, how’s it going, we must get out for a pint some time, I think I owe you one.”
“You certainly do Santa” I said, “Why don’t we meet later in McHughs when you’re finished here? Alan has installed a log burning stove and it’s lovely and cosy altogether.”
“That sounds like just the job” Santa said, “see you there in a couple of hours, I’ll need a warmup by then, it’s positively freezing today. You’d think I’d be used to it by now wouldn’t you, me being from the North Pole and all. Maybe I’m getting too old for this line of work.”
“You and me both Santa” I said.
Like Santa, I was well in need of a warm-up by three o’clock having been out to the Polar Plunge in Clogherhead. McHugh’s log stove was, as Santa had said, “just the job”.
Santa had arrived before me, quite a while before me, and he was certainly getting into the Christmas spirit regaling to all and sundry about his old pal Shane McGowan.
I suggested we head back to West Street and have a more private chat in Café Nero. “It won’t look good you heading home with a few too many pints on you” I said.
Amazingly he agreed and over coffee he told me all about his work and why he does it. The first question was of course the big one: “Are you really Santa or just some random man pretending?”
“The thing is there’s hundreds of millions of children in the world and they all love me” he said. “That might sound great but it’s a huge responsibility too. I can’t let any of them down – well apart from the bold ones!” he joked.
Yes, but are you THE Santa?” I pressed.
“Okay, I admit it, there are a lot of us. It would be impossible for one Santa to deliver presents all over the world in one day. Just take China, do you know how many children live there? No?
“Well, I’ll tell you, when we counted them in November there were 289,418,649 million children in China, 61,144,622 of them under the age of five By the time we finished counting them there may well have been a million or two more!”
“That’s a lot of children and there’s millions more in America and Africa and Australia and all over Europe and England and places I never heard of.
“So, a decision was taken many years ago, at a board meeting of S. Claus Inc., that the job was far too big for just the one Santa to do properly. So it was decided that each country would have their own Santa and I was so lucky to be posted in Drogheda as the Irish Santa.
“Wow, you’re based in Drogheda!” I said, whereabouts is your office?”
“Can’t tell you that” he said. It’s strictly confidential information. “Is it at the Mill Enterprise Hub? I asked.
“Ho, Ho, Ho” he responded. “I’m not saying anymore!”
What Santa wanted to talk about was Drogheda Homeless Aid which is why we were both there.
“Every year a group of volunteers stay up all night in West Street to raise funds for people who, for one reason or other, are without a home to call their own.
“The sleepers, as I call them, realise how lucky they are and are thankful that they and their children have nice homes, comfortable and warm, and they realise that there are many people in Ireland who don’t.”
“Sadly that number is very high at the moment but I believe the government is building more house all the time.”
Speaking on behalf of Drogheda Homeless Aid (DHA), Santa appealed to the people of Drogheda to donate as much they can afford so that they can make Christmas as comfortable as possible for homeless people.
“I know there is a severe cost of living crisis and everyone is feeling the pinch this Christmas, but whatever small amount you can afford to give will be very welcome and put to good use.
“When we use the term homeless many people think of people sleeping rough in shop doorways but that is only a small minority of people who are homeless.
“Most at least have a roof over their heads but it might be in a hostel such as St. Joseph’s on the North Strand or it could be whole families living in a hotel bedroom or individuals sleeping on a friend’s couch.”
“People wishing to help can drop into St. Joseph’s, alternatively you can CLICK HERE to make a financial donation.
