ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Santa Claus left the reindeer at the North Pole Friday and made quite the entrance at a local hospital. He even traded in his sleigh for a helicopter.

“We made an exception, it snowed yesterday, so Santa paired with our lifeguard flight team in order to come in a special way,” said Ana Bacon, director of Child Life at the UNM Children’s Hospital.

Santa spent time with the children, taking pictures and even delivering some gifts.

“We just want the kids to know that Santa hasn’t forgotten about them even though they are in the hospital, so he made it happen, even though he had to fly through the medical helicopter to see all the kids,” Bacon said.

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