Operation Smile in the Philippines
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More than seven thousand miles from Los Angeles, over dirt roads, and through mountains where water buffalo graze, children play in groups as they do all over the world. But young Paul Anthony catches our eye. He is the leader of the pack. And even the cleft lip he was born with doesn't change that.
But like thousands of other children in the Philippines, Paul's "difference" does affect him. Just a day before, it took him over rocky roads to a hospital more than an hour away, in the hope that he would be one to get his smile mended.
In the Philippines, one or two babies of every thousand are born with a cleft lip, cleft palate, or both. The lip or roof of the mouth do not fuse together, causing trouble with eating, drinking, and speaking.
The cause is not entirely known, but is believed to be partly genetic, and possibly a vitamin deficiency of the pregnant mother.
Doctor Dung Nguyen is a plastic surgery resident from U.S.C. She is here to help the doctors, dentists, and other volunteers of Operation Smile, an international charity.
"Looking in the eyes of a kid with a cleft lip," says Dr. Nguyen, "even if there is a language barrier, you don't need to have the parents or the kid to tell you how happy they are, or how much they want to look different, to look normal."
Once a year in the Philippines, Operation Smile helps as many kids as possible, but each year, some are turned away. Some children are not healthy enough to have the operation, others are not candidates for the help, and sometimes the organization just does not have enough volunteers or medical equipment.
A seventeen-year-old girl cried in the waiting room after she was evaluated. A year ago Operation Smile fixed her cleft lip, but it is too late to fix the opening in the roof of her mouth.
"Most kids we like to fix their cleft palate before two years of age," says Dr. Nguyen, "because that's where speech development begins. Unfortunately for her, she's now 17 years old and her tissue is much more difficult to mobilize."
They come hundreds, even thousands of miles to Cebu, a business and tourist center in the Philippines.
For Joseph Severino, his grandmothers' endurance brought him on the long trip here. But they also got a little help from a church congregation in Los Angeles.
Joseph's family had no way to pay for the plane ticket to get him from Palawan Philippines to Cebu, but a Pasadena church called Crossroads Christian Fellowship donated the money.
"The one who brought us here is from Cebu, but he came from California, Brother David Lim and Pastor Omer Mascarina," said Joseph's grandmother.
In his village, Joseph was known for his cleft lip. He soon hopes to be known only as "Joseph".
For Joseph, Paul Anthony, and hundreds of others, the long trek has been at least a partial success. They will get the operation they have hoped for.
In a day they return to the hospital, and surgery begins.
For most kids, a surgery of forty-five minutes makes the difference.
Dr. Bill Magee, a founder of Operation Smile, says: "For every child we take care of, that child is given a chance of an entirely new existence. All it takes is for people to come forward and help.We've got the tools. We've got the hands. We've got the bodies. We just need everybody to start participating.
Even one day after the surgery, the improvement is clear. The children have swelling and bruising that will take a few weeks to heal, but for many, the change is miraculous. Operation Smile has given these children the chance to eat, play, and grow up without the trouble a cleft lip or palate can bring.
Even though Operation Smile's Philippine mission is complete for this year, other missions are now taking place, and next year, volunteers will help more kids in the Philippines. Volunteers are currently raising money to help kids all over the world on other missions. Please visit the Operation Smile web site at www.operationsmile.org to donate your time, money, or skills to help children.
But like thousands of other children in the Philippines, Paul's "difference" does affect him. Just a day before, it took him over rocky roads to a hospital more than an hour away, in the hope that he would be one to get his smile mended.
In the Philippines, one or two babies of every thousand are born with a cleft lip, cleft palate, or both. The lip or roof of the mouth do not fuse together, causing trouble with eating, drinking, and speaking.
The cause is not entirely known, but is believed to be partly genetic, and possibly a vitamin deficiency of the pregnant mother.
Doctor Dung Nguyen is a plastic surgery resident from U.S.C. She is here to help the doctors, dentists, and other volunteers of Operation Smile, an international charity.
"Looking in the eyes of a kid with a cleft lip," says Dr. Nguyen, "even if there is a language barrier, you don't need to have the parents or the kid to tell you how happy they are, or how much they want to look different, to look normal."
Once a year in the Philippines, Operation Smile helps as many kids as possible, but each year, some are turned away. Some children are not healthy enough to have the operation, others are not candidates for the help, and sometimes the organization just does not have enough volunteers or medical equipment.
A seventeen-year-old girl cried in the waiting room after she was evaluated. A year ago Operation Smile fixed her cleft lip, but it is too late to fix the opening in the roof of her mouth.
"Most kids we like to fix their cleft palate before two years of age," says Dr. Nguyen, "because that's where speech development begins. Unfortunately for her, she's now 17 years old and her tissue is much more difficult to mobilize."
They come hundreds, even thousands of miles to Cebu, a business and tourist center in the Philippines.
For Joseph Severino, his grandmothers' endurance brought him on the long trip here. But they also got a little help from a church congregation in Los Angeles.
Joseph's family had no way to pay for the plane ticket to get him from Palawan Philippines to Cebu, but a Pasadena church called Crossroads Christian Fellowship donated the money.
"The one who brought us here is from Cebu, but he came from California, Brother David Lim and Pastor Omer Mascarina," said Joseph's grandmother.
In his village, Joseph was known for his cleft lip. He soon hopes to be known only as "Joseph".
For Joseph, Paul Anthony, and hundreds of others, the long trek has been at least a partial success. They will get the operation they have hoped for.
In a day they return to the hospital, and surgery begins.
For most kids, a surgery of forty-five minutes makes the difference.
Dr. Bill Magee, a founder of Operation Smile, says: "For every child we take care of, that child is given a chance of an entirely new existence. All it takes is for people to come forward and help.We've got the tools. We've got the hands. We've got the bodies. We just need everybody to start participating.
Even one day after the surgery, the improvement is clear. The children have swelling and bruising that will take a few weeks to heal, but for many, the change is miraculous. Operation Smile has given these children the chance to eat, play, and grow up without the trouble a cleft lip or palate can bring.
Even though Operation Smile's Philippine mission is complete for this year, other missions are now taking place, and next year, volunteers will help more kids in the Philippines. Volunteers are currently raising money to help kids all over the world on other missions. Please visit the Operation Smile web site at www.operationsmile.org to donate your time, money, or skills to help children.
