“Where are Santa’s reindeer?” wonders eight-year-old Arturo Hernandez. Santa Claus and the Santa Monica Fire Department visited patients at UCLA Mattel Children’s Hospital in Santa Monica. Ignicia Varela, Arturo’s mother, reveals Santa’s answer, “They are on the roof. Santa arrives in a helicopter.” She continues, “We’ve been here for more than a year. Arturo has a sarcoma, cancer, in his right leg. He was so happy to see Santa. This visit is encouraging to all the children in the hospital. The gifts they give are a great joy for us parents. They gave Arturo a monster truck, and he really likes those. We’ll take him to a park to play with it there when we get home.”

Tags: cancer, featured, Patient Story, Pediatric Cancer, Santa Monica Fire Department, sarcoma, UCLA Mattel Children's Hospital, UCLA Medical Center Santa Monica