11-year-old Kasey’s Christmas card gets stamp of approval from Micheál Martin

A Christmas card designed by an 11-year-old from Cork may reach the Taoiseach’s mantelpiece — but not Donald Trump’s.

Kasey O’Brien’s eye-catching design is winging its way to Irish embassies all over the world after Fianna Fáil party leader Micheál Martin selected it as his official Christmas card for 2017.

“It’s been sent to all the Irish embassies, to politicians from home and abroad, and to family and friends,” Mr Martin said during a visit to St Anthony’s Boys’ National School in Ballinlough, where Kasey is in fifth class.

His skillful illustration of Santa, with Spongebob Squarepants lurking in the background, “stood out a mile” from among the 200 entries, Mr Martin said.

Kasey’s artwork is much admired among his classmates. Is there an artistic gene in the family? “No, but my mum writes poems,” he said, opening up a possibility of an alternative to Hallmark, with his designs and his mum’s verse.

School principal Seán Lyons said Mr Martin selects a winning design from a different Cork school each year and they are delighted that this time it is St Anthony’s, where Mr Martin’s sons Cillian and Micheál Aodh are past pupils.

The Christmas card by Kasey O’Brien. Picture: Denis Minihane.

“In fact Cillian and Micheál Aodh helped pick the winner this year,” Mr Martin said. “We sift through them carefully every year and usually, the whole family is involved.”

Sam Hernan, also from fifth class, took the runner-up prize, with both boys receiving book vouchers. Kasey also presented Mr Martin with a caricature, which he didn’t rule out using as an election poster, should the confidence and supply agreement with Fine Gael break down.

So did Mr Martin send one of Kasey’s cards to Donald Trump? “No, it’s not gone to the White House,” he said. How about Leo Varadkar? “Yes,” he said. It is, after all, the season of goodwill.