“Saint” Nick Hamilton lives in Tualatin with Mrs. Claus and their two elves. His great-grandfather was Santa for the Newberg Fire Department, and from an early age, Nick knew he wanted to play Santa when he grew up. When not driving a sleigh, he drives a school bus for the Beaverton school district and makes puppets for clients like Disney and Universal Studios during the summer.
Pictures of his great-grandfather as Santa were prominent at the family home. “The parallels between Santa and me just made sense,” says Nick. “We’re both named Nick, we both love bringing joy to children, both are woodcarvers and make toys, and most depictions of young Santa showed him with red hair like mine!”
In third grade, Newberg High did a production of “The Music Man.” They were looking for a younger kid to play Winthrop, and my teacher (who happened to be married to the musical director) said, “I’ve got just the kid for you!” After that, Nick was hooked. Nick added, “Performing was my purpose. I was in the choir at church and school, I was in every play, even Thespian Club president my senior year of high school.”
At 16, Nick met his future Mrs. Claus in choir at church, but they didn’t start dating till they were 20. The Hamiltons married at 23, and their first child, Jills, was born three years later in 2006. Then, in 2009, a son, Gavin, was born. Jills is now a senior at Creekside High, and Gavin is a sophomore at TuHS. He is still actively acting in community theatres throughout the area, too, but his favorite role is St. Nick!
Saint Nick will be at the Tualatin Heritage Center again this year on Saturday, December 14 from 12-4 p.m. Join him, and the Tualatin Crimsonnaires at 1 p.m. Janet Steiger Carr will deliver a dramatic reading of “The Gift of the Magi” and much more, including treats.
An Old Fashioned Christmas
When: Saturday, December 14, 2024from 12:00 – 4:00 p.m.
Where: Tualatin Heritage Center
8700 SW Sweek Drive
Tualatin, Oregon 972062
Info: Free Admission and free parking behind the police station
