My Nonprofit Reviews

In 1975 my first child was born with a cleft lip. It was a total shock, I knew about clefts but had no knowledge of how these happened, the treatments available, or anyone who had been born with a cleft or a child born with a cleft. We were lucky to be in Scotland with a free NHS service. Two days after he was born a specialist surgeon who operated on clefts came to the hospital and gave all the information we needed, especially the timeline for operations. The shock was still raw but armed with the knowledge he gave I was less worried. The children in the countries Smile train provide free services to repair clefts don't have this support which is why I choose to donate to them. Families who have children born with clefts are ostracized by their communities. The child grows up in isolation as it is believed they are children of the devil etc shunned by their peers. The change in this after a cleft operation is tangible so well worth doing. In these times of harsh austerity, the first thing to go is charitable donations, totally understandable, however, every donation no matter how big or small all helps to change a child and their family's lives. The doctors, nurses, anesthetists with all other staff know the issues families have when a child is born with a cleft and how harrowing it is for the child all through their life. That is why they bring the operations to the local areas and provide their services free of charge. The change in family's lives is easy to see. They no longer worry about the child's future but best of all is seeing the beaming smile the child now has. the Smile Train isn't one of the charities we see advertised as much as cancer charities etc, however, their work provides an essential service to families and children and that is why I choose to support them.