![Sesnie hugging a boy after cleft lip and cleft palate surgery in Ethiopia](/sites/default/files/styles/1_column_470_x_305/public/2021-04/sesnie-hugging-cleft-lip-cleft-palate-patient-ethiopia.jpg?itok=UGvLse46)
"I Am Resilient!" Meet Smile Train's Program Manager for East Africa
A conversation with one of our heroes.
Milagros Finishes Strong
How Smile Train helped a girl who nearly didn't survive infancy grow to become queen of the rink.
![Mirian sits in a dress with untreated cleft lip](/sites/default/files/styles/1_column_470_x_305/public/2021-02/mirian-sits-in-dress.jpg?itok=EsVtwYsk)
A Warrior at Heart
At one month old, Mirian weighed just four pounds. Five months later, with the support of our local partners, she had transformed into a happy, chubby baby.
![Mia wears a superhero costume](/sites/default/files/styles/1_column_470_x_305/public/2021-01/mia-is-a-superhero-super.jpg?itok=5i2KiFdY)
Mia: The Hero We Need
It's a bird. It's a plane. No, it's Smile Train patient Mia from Argentina.
![Saksham is holding an image of himself before cleft surgery](/sites/default/files/styles/1_column_470_x_305/public/2021-01/saksham-holding-before-super_0.jpg?itok=YBOFWnED)
Saksham: Hope Is Always Alive
A boy from India is starving and his parents don't know what to do.
![Mamta Carroll Smile Train India](/sites/default/files/styles/1_column_470_x_305/public/2021-02/mamta-carrol-smile-train-india.jpg?itok=PPz_vp9E)
Mamta Carroll: Every Patient is a World in Themselves
Mamta oversees Smile Train's programs from Egypt to the Philippines but sees the whole world in the smile of each individual child.
![Celeste in Smile Train scrubs](/sites/default/files/styles/1_column_470_x_305/public/2021-02/nurse-celeste-in-scubs.jpg?itok=mrJTGdMl)
A Nurse's Commitment
Nurse Celeste always tried to avoid working with the babies with clefts in her neonatal ward because she felt unable to meet their needs. Then her son was born with a cleft.
![Saraswati holds a Smile Train fan](/sites/default/files/styles/1_column_470_x_305/public/2021-02/saraswati-holds-smile-train-fan.jpg?itok=w5hqUR0-)
Nourishing Saraswati
Saraswati's parents tried everything to feed their baby, but no matter what they tried, the milk still spilled out her cleft. She constantly screamed with hunger, and they didn't know how she'd make it. Then a friend told them about Smile Train.
![Three siblings in India have cleft treatment](/sites/default/files/styles/1_column_470_x_305/public/2021-02/one-family-india-three-cleft-surgeries.jpg?itok=DQP2AbQE)
One Family Needs Three Smiles
Kamlesh learned to live with his cleft. His three children could not.
![Valery holds the image of herself before cleft lip surgery](/sites/default/files/styles/1_column_470_x_305/public/2021-02/valery-holding-before-cleft-surgery-image.jpg?itok=89hoR6nv)
The Smile Virtuoso
When Valery was born, her parents cried at the sight of her cleft. Now, thanks to continuing treatment sponsored by Smile Train, Valery fills their lives with song and music.
![Auner laying down in a row of faces](/sites/default/files/styles/1_column_470_x_305/public/2021-02/auner-in-row-of-kids.jpg?itok=Mlr0fkrl)
Feeding Auner’s Mind, Body, and Soul
Auner was lucky to survive long enough to enter our partner's care. Now, he's thriving and smiling.