Santa Claus Arrives via Helicopter and Rappels Down at the 34th Annual Luskin Orthopaedic Institute for Children Toys & Joy to Greet Over 1,000 Patients & Families

Award winning actor, Esai Morales, Councilmember Curren Price and volunteers help pediatric patients receive gifts

It felt like a “Miracle on 34^th Street” at the 34^th annual Luskin Orthopaedic Institute for Children (LuskinOIC) Toys & Joy holiday celebration on Wednesday, December 6. Santa Claus, opting to let his reindeer rest for the upcoming big night, chose to ask his friends from the LAPD SWAT team chopper him into the children’s holiday party and toy giveaway. Santa then rappelled down the LuskinOIC campus wall to greet the largest crowd the nonprofit organization has ever hosted at Toys & Joy!

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Santa Claus Arrives via Helicopter at the 34th Annual Luskin Orthopaedic Institute for Children Toys & Joy to Greet Over 1,000 Patients & Families (Photo: Business Wire)

Over 1,000 patients and children from the community received gifts and toys. Guests enjoyed a day full of games, photos with Santa, and holiday cheer. “Mission: Impossible- Dead Reckoning” actor, Esai Morales and partner, Elvimar Silva, joined staff and volunteers by handing out toys to patients, while Councilmember Curren D. Price, provided opening remarks by thanking LuskinOIC for their service to “our littlest warriors at their darkest times.”

LuskinOIC treasures bringing joy to the community that is dearest to them – their patients and families. Dr. Mauricio Silva, LuskinOIC Medical Director, highlighted in English and Spanish that “LuskinOIC Toys & Joy is a much-anticipated event for the families we serve, as well as the employees who enjoy seeing our patients faces light up!” Toys & Joy was created to encourage holistic health and foster the spirit of community by ensuring that patients and their siblings receive toys and gifts to enjoy the holiday.

More than 93% of LuskinOIC’s patients are underinsured, and the nonprofit organization endeavors to deliver timely expert care to socioeconomically disadvantaged children. The 112-year-old pediatric institute strongly believes that community support and collective kindness is an integral part of a patient’s care and healing.

Mission-based, LuskinOIC provides high-quality care for children with musculoskeletal injuries and disorders and advances patient-centered care worldwide. It also promotes medical education and scientific research in orthopaedics. In partnership with UCLA Health, LuskinOIC stands as the largest provider of pediatric orthopaedic care on the West Coast and receives more than 60,000 patient visits each year, and offers pro-bono treatment to patients in Calexico and Mexicali, among other cities worldwide.

Toys & Joy would not be possible without the wonderful donors and sponsors who support every year, including the Starlight Children’s Foundation, Automobile Club of Southern California, Clear Channel, The Book Foundation, Los Angeles Fire Department, Tyler Skaggs Foundation, the LA Galaxy, Project Sunshine, Orthopaedic Medical Magnet High School, UCLA & USC sororities and fraternities, Palos Verdes High School, Los Angeles Ghostbusters, Light of the World Church, LuskinOIC’s support groups, the LAPD SWAT team, and our individual donors.

For more information or to donate, please visit luskinoic.org and follow us @LuskinOIC

About Luskin Orthopaedic Institute for Children (LuskinOIC)

Luskin Orthopaedic Institute for Children was founded in 1911 as Los Angeles Orthopaedic Hospital and today is the largest pediatric orthopaedic facility on the West Coast focused solely on musculoskeletal conditions in children. In alliance with UCLA Health and with the support of the LuskinOIC Foundation, we advance pediatric orthopaedics worldwide through outstanding patient care, medical education, and research. Our locations in downtown Los Angeles, Santa Monica, Westwood, and Calexico treat the full spectrum of pediatric orthopaedic disorders and injuries. For more information, visit us at LuskinOIC.org

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