MOFFETT FIELD, Calif. Christmas will be brighter this year for children from San Francisco Bay Area hospitals, including Lucile Packard Childrens Hospital at Stanford, Kaiser Permanente Santa Clara Medical Center and Childrens Hospital and Research Center, Oakland, Calif., who will be treated to a day of holiday fun with their families.

On Saturday, Dec. 11, 2010, NASA’s Hangar N211 will be transformed into the ‘North Pole’ for the annual Cops Care Cancer Foundation Christmas Fantasy Flight for children with cancer and other life-threatening illnesses.

The festive holiday event will be held at 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. PST in the San Jose Police Department Air Support Unit hangar, N211, at NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif. Families will begin boarding busses at approximately 11 a.m. PST at the Yahoo! Inc., campus for transport to NASA Ames.

WHAT: Cops Care Cancer Foundation’s annual Christmas Fantasy Flight for children with cancer

WHEN: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. PST, Saturday, Dec. 11, 2010

WHERE: San Jose Police Department Air Support Unit Hangar, N211, NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif.

For media clearance to attend the event, contact Karen Jenvey at 650-604-4034 or 650-996-1391 by noon Friday, Dec. 10, 2010. Your name and organization will be added to a list at the NASA Ames main gate. News media representatives are requested to arrive by 11:30 a.m. PST Saturday, Dec. 11, to be staged for the arrival of the children and their families to Hangar N211.

Highlighting the event will be the arrival of Santa in a police helicopter, bearing gifts for each child and their siblings. Other activities include a ‘bubble zone,’ jumper houses, face painting, carnival games and special access to police and fire department vehicles.

Police officers and firefighters from the San Jose Police Department and Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety will greet the children at Yahoo! Inc.’s Sunnyvale campus before boarding buses to NASA Ames. Attending the event will be California Assembly member Alberto Torrico, 49er Head Coach Mike Singletary along with a few of his players, local police officers, cartoon characters and more than 100 foundation volunteers.

In addition, Yahoo! Inc., Sunnyvale, Calif., will provide check-in gifts for the children and the Cops Care Cancer Foundation will give each family gift cards to help purchase Christmas dinner and presents.

For more information, contact San Jose Police Officer Brian Simuro, president of the Cops Care Cancer Foundation, at 408-839-3349 or visit the foundation Web site: http://www.arrestcancer.org/

For directions to NASA Ames Research Center, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/centers/ames/home/directions.html