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Darien’s long-time Santa Claus could use some early Christmas magic, and the community is coming through. Over $13,000 has been raised to help Joe Warren, 78, who spent the summer in the hospital and a rehab facility. Warren has been the town’s beloved St. Nick, for 44 years. “Kids in Darien believe longer than most people,” said Abby Shiner, Warren’s daughter. “He really embodies it all year round. You can go on vacation, and he will be Santa even in the summer months. Kids will see him in the grocery store and kind of look at him funny, and he’ll just put a finger to his lips and go, ‘Shh,’ and they’ll be like, ‘Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh!’” It helps that the long white beard is real and has been for decades after Warren went prematurely white before the age of 40, according to Shiner. Warren is a former Noroton firefighter and served on the board of selectman and school board. But his career in the red suit began as an accident in his early 30s after an office Christmas…..