Our Stories

Neilsen helped a mission organization that flew doctors into Madagascar to provide cleft care, but he knew local doctors were as capable as those flying in. 

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. 

Nkunda had to hide in the bushes on his journey to school every day. Something needed to be done. 

"For me, it’s always the question of 'What if Smile Train hadn’t been there?'"

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

Dr. Echeverri founded FISULAB in the belief that all aspects of cleft care are equal.

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.

When Oscar was born with a cleft, his family found a mission-based organization to provide him with the surgery they could not afford. But when a complication arose, they had already left the country. Thankfully, Smile Train's local partners are always there. 

When Dr. Dau started as a Smile Train partner, he knew children with clefts were often abandoned or put in orphanages. As an orphan himself, he comes to work each day determined that no other child should experience that pain.