By Lesley Walsh
DEMAND for Bangor’s ‘Tattooed Santa’ has risen so sharply this year that generous local businesses have stepped in to help fund his annual Christmas dinners.
Last year, big-hearted Chris Dalzell served up nearly 200 dinners to local people experiencing hard times, to the elderly and homeless. This is far removed from the eight meals he started with in 2020 when he stepped in to help an elderly man on Christmas day after Covid restrictions left him with only a tin of soup.
In 2022, the number rose to 32, to 56 in 2023 and by Christmas last year, Chris was putting together 198 Christmas dinners with all the trimmings, cards, crackers and selection boxes. Delivering most of those himself, he didn’t get to sit down to his own Christmas dinner until 7.30pm.
To-date, the father of two has spent around £20,000 from his own pocket, working seven days a week from early November to pay for the meals he dishes out from the kitchen of the home he shares with understanding partner Ruth, and their two young daughters.
Chris revealed he has had in the region of 230 requests for dinners so for for December 25. And while he usually delivers them personally, he will be assisted this year by the Welcome Organisation which will be distributing the Bangor Samaritan’s dinners to homeless people in Belfast, like last year.
As he prepares those dinners, Chris is grateful to be receiving help from Crossgar poultry firm, GB Poultry, who are donating 23 of the 38, twenty pound turkeys he is ordering, with the rest 15 being heavily discounted.
He has also been aided by Newtownards woman, Sandra Hogan, who gave Chris the proceeds from a Halloween event she holds annually in memory of her late son, and he’s also been given a financial boost from That Prize Guy, with donation buckets also out in the community accepting donations.
Tesco Bloomfield has donated to the fundraising effort, with this year also seeing the generous contribution of dessert cookies and bakes from two local businesses, Karen Finlay, of Betsy’s Best Bakes, and Rebecca Rankin, who owns Reb’s Kitchen.
Chris, a chef manager at a Belfast care home, is even using some of the funds raised to provide substantial Christmas presents to children of all ages, thanks to the community’s support of his amazing altruism.
Chris, who calls himself the ‘Tattooed Santa’ for his distinctive facial ink, is now calling on the public to nominate worthy recipients of his Christmas dinners, via his Facebook page or by emailing chrismdalzell@live.co.uk.
Chris said: “I’m doing this for those in need only,” he said. “I don’t ask any questions, just simply who it’s for and an address.
“Even if you know someone who these could help, please get in touch. They don’t have to be for you personally. And I would really like to help the homeless and elderly who might be on their own. If it’s for a homeless person we can make arrangements to get it to them hot on Christmas Day.
“This seems to grow year in, year out and I will do my absolute best to accommodate everyone I can after last year’s massive 198 dinners.”
Chris said he is compelled to keep up the effort year after year because of ‘the need there is out there’.
“I couldn’t sit there on Christmas day and eat a big meal knowing someone else is out there with nothing,” he said. “And it teaches my daughters that Christmas is for giving, not just receiving.”
