What’s your idea of happiness and what makes you most uneasy?
Happiness is a full sleigh, a clear sky, and knowing there are thousands of hardworking people across Ireland — staff, boards, volunteers and CEOs — creating real magic long before I arrive.
What makes me uneasy?
Running low on biscuits in Tipperary. A grim prospect indeed.
What do you fear most?
A global shortage of AA batteries. You’ve no idea how many otherwise lovely toys would become very expensive paperweights.
Which person, past or present, do you most relate to and admire?
Mary Robinson. A warm-hearted trailblazer who believed in building a fairer world — and she never waited for someone else to do the heavy lifting. Reminds me of all of you in the not-for-profit world.
What traits do you most loathe in yourself and others?
In myself: I draw up endless lists, then misplace the very one I needed. The elves call it “Classic Claus Syndrome.”
In others: anyone who says, “Ah sure, no need to wrap it.” Friends, even socks deserve a moment of theatrical mystery.
What’s your most embarrassing moment or regret?
The time I attempted a dramatic reindeer dismount in Kilkenny, only to get my boot caught in Dasher’s harness. He paraded me upside-down around the square like a festive mop. The elves still replay the footage every year.
What’s your most unappealing habit or indulgence?
I shed beard glitter everywhere. Mrs Claus says living with me is like living inside a permanent arts-and-crafts catastrophe.
What do you always carry and what vehicle do you drive?
I never leave home without a spare candy cane — a surprisingly versatile tool.
My ride? A carrot-fuelled, turbo-charged sleigh with zero emissions. The reindeer union is very proud of that.
Where and when have you been happiest?
Every Christmas Eve, gliding over Ireland and hearing children whisper, “Do you think he’s here yet?” It never gets old.
What do you find depressing or overrated?
Depressing: deadlines — I sympathise with every project manager in the sector.
Overrated: those “premium” crackers that offer a paperclip as a grand prize.
How do you unwind or deal with solitude?
A roaring fire, hot chocolate, and a fierce game of Scrabble with Mrs Claus. She pretends not to be competitive. It’s adorable.
What’s your fantasy or biggest journey?
A Christmas delivery schedule where the weather behaves, Dublin traffic parts like the Red Sea, and nobody builds chimneys too small for a man of generous stature.
What would your motto be?
“Lead with generosity — and always check your sleigh twice.”
What’s your favourite smell, word, book and building?
Smell: fresh snow and cinnamon on the air.
Word: jollity.
Book: The Little Prince — imagination is everything.
Building: any Irish community centre where the kettle never truly cools and the welcome is guaranteed.
What keeps you awake at night?
Other than Christmas Eve? Worrying the elves will discover TikTok tutorials for “extreme sled modifications.”
What’s your life motto or lesson learned?
Every act of kindness — big or small — changes the world a little. And those working in Ireland’s not-for-profit sector prove it daily. Keep going. Even when your boots feel heavy.
Favourite Joke:
Why did the elf apply for a job in the Irish not-for-profit sector?
Because he heard that’s where the real elf-care happens.
