Unwrap Joyful Moments

So, my real name is John Jeffrey-Schimmel. I work by day as an Office Manager for a Mental Health Facility in Mastic Beach, New York and have been there for over 8 years.

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I began my Santa Journey in 2018  portraying Santa Claus for our company Christmas party for underprivileged children. I started with the basic Red Fluffy Suit, an elastic Beard and wig.

 

​​Each Year, I would have people ask me to come and do a Home Visit or attend their Company Christmas Party.

 

Fast Forward to 2021. I was slowly getting the business back and then trying to juggle cancellations and rescheduling because of Mask Mandates and lockdowns. The 2021 season was a bust.

 

I debated whether or not to continue this journey.​

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August of 2022, I get a phone call from a photographer asking me to portray Santa on the beach for a photoshoot for 4 families for their upcoming Christmas Cards. I had to give it a second thought if I really wanted to do this. I did what I had done in the past with using hair paint to color my beard. ​I had so much fun at that event, I decided why not have even more fun and start really doing this.

 

I have been married to my loving husband for over 12 years and we have been together for 26 years. I currently live in Mastic Beach, NY with my husband and our two dogs, Patrick and Jewel. When I am not Santa Claus, I like to spend my time working in my garden and relaxing on the beach.

 

I began to join a lot of "Santa" Facebook groups  and began doing my research. 

 

 I said "I CAN DO THIS"  and by reading more and more, I began to fall in love with this journey. 

 

If you would have told me 10 years ago I would be portraying Santa Claus, I would have called you nuts. I found an amazing suit that a previous Santa was selling, I took the risk and bought it and have not regretted a single minute of it.