Santas come to town

Friday 08 December 2017

If you saw more than one hundred Santas in town this afternoon, don't worry, it wasn't a case of Christmas stress getting the better of you.

The mass Christmas Dash from Liberty Wharf up Conway Street, down Broad Street down Gloucester Street and back to the start along the Esplanade in aid of Jersey Hospice Care, has now become a regular seasonal fixture.

Despite the slight drizzle those taking part in the event said they’d enjoyed it – many commented they were grateful it wasn’t too far and didn’t take too long. Amongst the bearded wonders were a number of office workers who’d quickly ‘popped out’ telling their colleagues they had ‘something to do in the lunch hour’ – Secret Santas.

The run aims to promote awareness of the charity and to help raise funds. It costs around £14,600 a day to run the service with all the money coming from donations.

Amongst other upcoming events the charity has planned are Festive Friday – next week, when schools and workplaces are encouraged to raise cash by holding a cake bake or fancy dress or Christmas jumper event – and, of course, for the brave or foolhardy a Christmas Day dip in the sea. For a number of years both the Smugglers Inn at Ouaisne and the Watersplash at St Ouen have staged the event.