Smile Train Named Winner of 2025 Amazon Web Services Imagine Grant for Nonprofits

New York, NY - December 2, 2025 — Smile Train today announced it has been selected as a winner of the 2025 Amazon Web Services (AWS) Imagine Grant, a public grant opportunity open to registered charities in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, United States, and Canada and registered 501(c) nonprofit organizations in the United States who are using technology to solve the world’s most pressing challenges. The grant will support Smile Train’s efforts to create a single, trusted foundation that drives organizational efficiency, strengthens donor confidence, and accelerates impact at scale.

Smile Train was named a winner of the Momentum to Modernize award, which recognizes foundational technology projects. Smile Train will receive up to $50,000 in unrestricted funding, up to $30,000 in AWS Promotional Credits, and project implementation support. Awardees were selected based on several factors, including the innovative and unique nature of the project, impact on mission-critical goals, and clearly defined outcomes and milestones.

Using this award, Smile Train will implement a modern AWS Lakehouse architecture to unify donor, patient, and program data across more than 95 countries, integrating information from CRM systems, BI tools, and global program databases into a secure platform that enables real-time visibility and collaboration. The solution will utilize Amazon S3 for scalable storage, AWS DataZone for governance and metadata management, and AWS Glue and Zero-ETL integrations for efficient data movement. Additionally, Amazon Bedrock and SageMaker will provide AI and machine learning tools to enhance forecasting, donor engagement, and reporting.

“This initiative represents a transformative step in how Smile Train uses data to serve children and families around the world,” said Erin Stieber, Chief Program & Strategy Officer at Smile Train. “By unifying our global program and donor data on AWS, we’ll gain the real-time insights needed to strengthen partnerships, allocate resources more effectively, and ultimately expand access to high-quality cleft care in every community we serve.”

"At AWS, we're continually amazed by the nonprofit sector's innovative spirit and dedication to creating positive change in our communities and around the globe," said Rick Buettner, Managing Director of Global Nonprofits at AWS. "Through the Imagine Grant program, we're seeing organizations embrace cloud technology in ways that fundamentally reshape how they deliver on their missions. From scaling their impact to reaching underserved communities, these nonprofits are showing us what's possible when vision meets innovation. We're proud to support their transformative work and help them build solutions that will benefit communities for years to come."

Since the launch of the Imagine Grant program in 2018, AWS has awarded more than $21 million in unrestricted funding, AWS cloud computing credits, and technical expertise to more than 170 nonprofit organizations. Learn more about past recipients and how nonprofits use AWS to advance their missions around the world at the AWS for nonprofits hub.

Previous winners are currently using AWS services to tackle critical challenges such as improving political transparency, reducing the administrative burden placed on clinicians, accelerating coral reef monitoring, helping millions access clean and safe drinking water globally, tackling rare disease research, and more.

Over 95,000 nonprofit organizations worldwide use AWS to increase their impact and advance mission goals. Through multiple programs tailored specifically to the nonprofit community, AWS enables nonprofits of all sizes to overcome barriers to technology adoption, while enhancing the scale, performance, and capabilities of mission operations.

For more information on the AWS Imagine Grant, visit https://aws.amazon.com/governmenteducation/nonprofits/aws-imagine-grant-program/

About Smile Train

Smile Train empowers local medical professionals with training, funding, and resources to provide free cleft surgery and comprehensive cleft care to children globally. We advance a sustainable solution and scalable global health model for cleft treatment, drastically improving children's lives, including their ability to eat, breathe, speak, and ultimately thrive. To learn more about how Smile Train's sustainable approach means donations have both an immediate and long-term impact, please visit smiletrain.org.

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Media Contact

Emily Gay
Public Relations Strategist
egay@smiletrain.org
+1 (561) 308-0089