Our Stories

When Vivian started school, the kids laughed at her so much she didn't want to live. Then she met someone who told her she should become a model. 

Even when the whole world seemed against her, Damaris persisted. And won.

An interview with Dr. Esther Njoroge-Muriithi.

Magaly is the mother of David, age five, a Smile Train patient in Quito, Ecuador. She shared with us her son’s journey to cleft care and what Smile Train has meant for her entire family.

Smile Train staff in Africa are ready to show you the impact of your support. 

Angelica was 15 years old, single, and had just given birth to a baby with a cleft. All she knew about clefts was how she had seen people with them harassed without mercy. But she promised to never give up on the little life before her. 

Monica has been through more than any child should, but today she shines bright.

Maria has been waiting for cleft surgery since 1953. When the opportunity came, her son wanted her to pass. 

Stella breastfed her seven other children without problems, but Maria’s clefts caused the milk to come out of her nose and made her choke.

Ayubu's classmates harassed him relentlessly for years because of a local myth about clefts. When he was 10 years old, his mother heard there was hope at a hospital less than an hour away.

Kamse was excited for his first day of school, but, when the day finally came, he was taunted all day long. Kamse ran home and begged his grandfather never to make him go back.