Strange Old Man

In a small town there is a strange old man, and he has a red nose dog, who looks like always sleepy. 
Rory and her little friends often play mischief on the old man. When he gets angry his eyes open wide.  His eyebrows are long and people usually don’t get to see his eyes.
At Christmas Eve, everyone is sleeping, but Rory wait at the fireplace for Santa Claus. She almost falls into sleep when she hear all of the sudden a sound comes from the fireplace, then she sees the back of an old man wearing a red outfit.  It is Santa Claus! But he also looks just like the strange old man in the town. 
Santa Claus takes Rory in the sleigh to deliver presents together, and then take her home to tell her a story. What is the link between the strange old man and Santa Claus? The strange old man also get a Christmas gift, who sent it?