AURORA, Colo. — Santa Claus arrived at the Children's Hospital Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus in style Wednesday morning, opting to rest his sleigh and rappel down the hospital wall instead.
The Aurora Police Department and community members came together to put on the hospital system's annual holiday parade, which kicked off with Santa's rooftop descent.
Typically, members of the Aurora PD SWAT Team will dress as superheroes and rappel down the hospital as part of training. This year, they put a holiday twist on the exercise.
"It's pretty unique this year that we're actually dressing up as Santa Claus, rappelling off the top of the roof, and hopefully bring a little bit of smiles to the kids who are at Children’s today," said Matthew Longshore, public information officer for the Aurora Police Department. "We have a couple of tall buildings in Aurora, so knowing how to repel is something that's super important. We’re really appreciative of Children's Hospital... the roof is really perfect for the two aspects, right, for training and brightening the day of the kids here."
Children's Way was lined with patients, families and hospital staff. Marian Catarina cheered at the parade with her daughter, Carolina, who is currently receiving treatment at Children's Hospital Colorado.
"It's very special because we don't want to be here, so having something like this for the kids can move forward to be a little bit happy makes me happy," Catarina said.
Spending this holiday season at the hospital is not what Catarina could have imagined, but she now has an uplifting memory to keep close thanks to the kindness of this Colorado community.
"It's amazing to see how a little bit of time that people dedicate themselves to can bring happiness to the kids, even if they're not feeling their best," the mother said.
During this time of year, it's easy to get swept up in the holiday hustle and bustle. However, events like this can remind us how powerful the gift of giving can be, especially to those who may need a little bit of holiday hope.
"This is very special. I think sometimes it can serve as just a distraction, but also a little bit of a taste of being at home. You know, just having that holiday spirit around you during this time of year. So there's many positives around this parade and good reasons to do this," said Christy Dobson, vice president of board and community relations at Children's Hospital Colorado.
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