PICTURES Laois club pulls out all the stops for Santa's Christmas visit

The Borris-In-Ossory Santa Claus Club team pulled out all the stops once again just before Christmas to provide local children with a lovely Christmas treat.

Helped by a team of local helpers, Santa took some busy time out of his hectic schedule on Sunday, December 21 to meet families and distribute gifts at St Joseph's National School. TO READ MORE about the visit and the club, see below this photo - to see more photos taken for the Leinster Express / Laois Live by Alf Harvey , TAP NEXT OR ARROW.

Now in its 26th year the Club has ensured that Santa’s visit has always been accompanied by other attractions such as discos, face painting, drinks &and snacks for the kids and tea/coffee for the parents.

The 2026 edition was no different, with lots of treats for all.

The club started out in 1999, when Santa’s first visit to kids from Borris-In-Ossory and surrounding areas took place at The Leix County Hotel. After a few more years at the Leix County Hotel, we moved to Rosie O’Grady’s (under the stairs!), the PE room at St Joseph’s Convent of Mercy National School, many years at O'Keeffe Park Borris-In-Ossory GAA Club, back to the Main hall at the new St Joseph’s National School. A few years were spent at Borris Innovation Centre before returning again to St Joseph’s NS.

Santa has arrived by pony and trap on many occasions - as was the case again this year. He has also used several other modes of transport. He even once tried to arrive by helicopter but was twarted by strong winds. He still arrived on foot that year with his heavy sack of goodies.

For the first 15 years or so, Santa also paid many visits to the kids in the local schools, Borris-In-Ossory & Killadooley.
Fundraising in the early days was facilitated by sponsorship and donations from local families and businesses, raffles and annual cabarets.

The current method is the Find the Joker draw, which began in 2018 when the Club teamed up with the Borris-in- Ossory Community Development/ Tidy Towns to run a fortnightly draw.

The money covers the cost of toys, Santa suits, decorations for Santa’s venue and a red Gazebo for hosting Santa each year.
Extra funds raised are donated to chosen charities. These have included Our Lady’s Children’s Hospital, Crumlin, St Anne’s Roscrea, St Vincent de Paul, Borris-in-Ossory, Borris-in-Ossory Playground and Borris-in-Ossory Social Services.

“We have been so fortunate to have so many Friends, Supporters and Volunteers since our start up in 1999,” says the Santa Clause Club team.

The Club was nominated in the Health & Wellbeing category of the 2025 Laois Community and Voluntary Awards, where they were runners-up.