100 Smiles in 100 Days

Bala Darshan was born with a cleft lip, a condition that made it difficult for him to eat, breathe and speak properly. His parents, who lived in the Kancheepuram district of Tamil Nadu, were devastated by the news, but they knew they had to do everything they could to help their son.

However, their family income of only 5000 rupees per month made it nearly impossible for them to afford the surgery and follow-up care that Bala Darshan needed. They tried to save as much as they could, but the medical expenses were just too high for them to handle alone. One day, a social worker from Mission Smile visited their village and told them about a program that provided free surgeries and medical care for children with cleft lips and palates.

Bala Darshan's parents were overjoyed to hear this news and immediately contacted the Mission Smile to see if their son was eligible. After a few weeks and medical evaluations in Chennai, Bala Darshan was deemed eligible for the program, and his surgery was scheduled. The day of the surgery was nerve-wracking for his parents, but they were relieved to see their son come out of the operating room looking healthier and happier than ever before.

In the weeks and months that followed, Bala Darshan received follow-up care from the medical team. His parents were amazed to see their son's transformation - he could eat and breathe more easily, and he was even starting to make sounds and try to speak. The family was grateful for the program and Colgate that had provided life-changing medical care for their son. They visited again February and were thankful to entire team.

We are pleased to provide a project report to our valuable donors at GlobalGiving for our project "100 Smiles in 100 Days". This project aimed to provide life-changing cleft surgeries to 100 children in underprivileged communities, and with your support, we were able to achieve this milestone. And are extending the project to provide another 100 surgeries

Project Overview: Cleft lip and palate is a common congenital disability that affects many children worldwide. The condition not only affects the physical appearance of children but also affects their speech and hearing abilities. Children with clefts often face social stigmatization and discrimination, making it difficult for them to integrate into society. Our project aimed to provide free cleft surgeries to children from underprivileged communities who do not have access to quality healthcare facilities. 

Project Achievements: With your generous support, we are proud to announce that we successfully completed 100 surgeries within the timeframe, bringing smiles to the faces of 100 children and their families. Our team of expert surgeons and healthcare professionals worked tirelessly to ensure that every child received the necessary care and support throughout the surgery and recovery process. Another 100 children will be provided with best quality care.

We are pleased to share that all the surgeries were successful, and the children are now able to lead normal lives, free from the physical and social challenges that come with clefts. We believe that this project has made a significant impact on the lives of these children and their families.

Project Challenges: During the project, we faced several challenges, including limited resources, staffing, and infrastructure. However, with your support, we were able to overcome these challenges and provide quality healthcare to the children.

Future Plans: We plan to continue our efforts to provide healthcare services to underprivileged communities, particularly those affected by congenital disabilities such as cleft lip and palate. We hope to expand our reach and provide our services to more children and families in the future.

In conclusion, we want to express our heartfelt gratitude to our donors at GlobalGiving for their support towards our project "100 Smiles in 100 Days". With your help, we were able to provide life-changing surgeries to 100 children, and we are confident that this project has made a significant impact on their lives and the communities they come from. We hope to continue our efforts to provide quality healthcare services to those in need and look forward to your continued support in the future.

We conducted difficukt cases week, which require special care and skills to operate in Guwathi (Comprenshive cleft care centre) last month and operated 50 such cases. 

We had medical volunteers and team from across the globe and total of 18 medical proffesional volunteered in the Mission Week from Europe, US and other counteries. 

We want to thank each one of you for ypur contribution. This helped us change 50 lives forever. 

Sharing a small story of 3 siblings :

Anticipating the birth of a new baby is usually a very exciting time of life. The expectant couple does many things to prepare for the baby, including setting up a nursery, gathering baby clothes, deciding on a name and many more things in their capacity. The parents expect to have a normal baby, with 10 fingers, 10 toes, and an intact face. Usually, they are totally unprepared for the possibility of a different outcome. Unfortunately, not all babies are born with perfect structures. When a child is born with cleft lip and/or cleft palate or other craniofacial anomalies, this is a true shock, especially because it involves the face. This can be a devastating blow to the family. What was expected to be a very happy and exciting time becomes a very stressful and emotional time for the parents and other family members.

There remain some phenomenal moments in every mission we conduct across the country that leave an enduring influence on each one of our lives changing our outlook on love and live forever. It was during our Shillong Colgate Mission we encountered a devastating moment from a family who has not one, neither two, three of their children born with cleft deformity. The painful and psychological condition of the parents with three of their kid with clefts only the parents can understand.

However, the emotionally strong and sensible parents tried to remain positive and find a solution to correct their child congenital deformity. The parents went to nearby government hospital and got to learn about the Mission Smile through RBSK team, it a breathtaking moment for the parents who got a hope that their wards too can get a smile like other peers Imorme Paslein , Kamnipaia Paslein, Markatjuh Paslein who are 8 yrs, 3.10yrs and 5.7 yrs respectively who belong to village Krem Mawsiang, under Khliehriat block of Meghalaya were screened on the third day of our mission and were cleared for the surgery on the fourth day of our mission. Imorme and Kamnipaia had bilateral cleft lip and Markatjug had unilateral cleft lip, all three had undergone surgery on the same day, and the surgery went successful. The joy of tears in the parent’s eyes was priceless when they saw their children smiling with like other children.

We are pleased to inform you that we have successfully completed 500+ surgeries in this financial year 2022-23 and are hoping to complete 3000+ surgeries in the year.

We are grateful for all the support and contribution made to our project, each dollar contributed has changed a life forever.

We are providing free comprehensive cleft care with world class medical safety and protocols. Covid19 have changed a lot of things and our cleft kids also faced many changelleges, with surgeries coming to halt.

A huge backlog of cases have piled up in the last couple of years. We seek your support, help and donation to provide these life changing surgeries!

“For attractive lips, Speak words of kindness”.

Wait, it sounds great. Imagine a baby ten months old with a smile that can wrap around the sun and a scream that can break the heart of even the most wicked person on earth. But, just as the moon has scars, so does this epitome of innocence. The infant was born with a cleft lip, and it breaks our heart to see a child who is nothing less than a divine ostracized for something he doesn’t even comprehend. This is the narrative of Zeeshan, who was born in the Salmara village of Assam. Asadul and Khaleda are the parents of the child. Before their baby
Zeeshan was born with a cleft; they had never seen one. They were relieved that Zeeshan’s sister, Ariyana Tamin treated him like any other child. However, his parents were concerned that they would never be able to afford the treatment he needed. This would have serious consequences for his future, so we began making inquiries immediately to see what options exist for families in their situation.

The baby struggled to eat because breastmilk would leak into his throat and nose through a hole in the roof of his mouth, causing him to choke. Zeeshan was constantly wailing from hunger and was on the verge of dying. His health was in serious danger. They were extremely worried about his future. When their neighbours unfairly blamed them and gossip about it, they don’t like to look at his face, it just added to the tension, and they think it is because of some miss deed by them. The family was fortunate to live with loving and supportive relatives. Thankfully, they were able to get help at a local childcare centre. The doctor recommended Mission Smile.

They couldn’t believe that at Mission Smile, all of their son’s cleft treatment would be free. The baby’s parents have all hopes in the surgery, and hope has the gift of miracles within itself.  After the
doctor scheduled surgery and provided them with all the information they needed to know about it. They can’t imagine the relief they felt when they took Zeeshan out, and his cleft was healed.  Mission Smile will do everything we can to do for the baby’s cleft surgery because we believe in doing what we can, where we are, with what we have. Our team encourages you to do a random act of kindness for children so that when they grow up, they can live a blessed and compassionate life as well.

Links:

• Website - Mission Smile