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    Help Change a Child's Life Forever

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    $85,315 donated to this project

    Your donation goes to the Operation Smile, Inc.

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    $75,000

    2,710 people donated

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    As she grew, Marceline learned to hide her cleft lip because people told her it made them "sick to their stomachs." She asked her mother, “Why am I not like the others?”
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    When Marceline was a baby, her mother often covered her face so people wouldn’t laugh at her. “I prayed God would allow her lip to be fixed,” she says.
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    Marceline dreamed of going to school but couldn’t. Instead, she spent her days working in the fields with her mother.
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    When Marceline heard that an Operation Smile medical team was coming to Rwanda, she said, “I was so happy, I was shaking.”
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    At our mission site in Kigali, Rwanda, Marceline received a thorough medical evaluation. She was thrilled to be chosen for surgery.
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    In a surgery that lasted about 45 minutes, our surgical team carefully repaired the cleft lip that had caused Marceline so much pain and heartbreak.
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    When Marceline saw her new smile in the mirror, happy tears came to her eyes. “I am so very beautiful!” she said.
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    Her grateful mother told us, “I didn’t even recognize my own daughter. Now she will be able to live a normal life. Thank you!”
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    Today, Marceline is in school, has new friends and is looking toward a bright future.
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    When an Operation Smile medical volunteer asked what she wants to do when she grows up, she didn’t hesitate. “I want to do what you do.”

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    • As she grew, Marceline learned to hide her cleft lip because people told her it made them "sick to their stomachs." She asked her mother, “Why am I not like the others?”
    • When Marceline was a baby, her mother often covered her face so people wouldn’t laugh at her. “I prayed God would allow her lip to be fixed,” she says.
    • Marceline dreamed of going to school but couldn’t. Instead, she spent her days working in the fields with her mother.
    • When Marceline heard that an Operation Smile medical team was coming to Rwanda, she said, “I was so happy, I was shaking.”
    • At our mission site in Kigali, Rwanda, Marceline received a thorough medical evaluation. She was thrilled to be chosen for surgery.
    • In a surgery that lasted about 45 minutes, our surgical team carefully repaired the cleft lip that had caused Marceline so much pain and heartbreak.
    • When Marceline saw her new smile in the mirror, happy tears came to her eyes. “I am so very beautiful!” she said.
    • Her grateful mother told us, “I didn’t even recognize my own daughter. Now she will be able to live a normal life. Thank you!”
    • Today, Marceline is in school, has new friends and is looking toward a bright future.
    • When an Operation Smile medical volunteer asked what she wants to do when she grows up, she didn’t hesitate. “I want to do what you do.”
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    The worldwide demand for cleft lip and cleft palate surgeries is staggering. Every 3 minutes, it is estimated a child somewhere in the world is born with a cleft.

    Every day, thousands of children born with cleft lip and cleft palate cover their faces in shame — hiding behind scarves, masks and even paper bags. Moreover, children suffering from clefts have trouble eating, speaking, are ostracized in their communities, and even labeled as "cursed."

    When Operation Smile met 11-year-old Marceline in Rwanda, people told her that looking at her cleft lip made them “sick to their stomachs," so she hid her face. No child should endure that kind of pain and torment — especially when a 45-minute surgery can completely transform their lives.

    Operation Smile was able to give Marceline a new smile and a chance to go to school, make friends and lead a normal life. Help give 20 children like Marceline who are hiding their face, a chance to smile for the first time. $240 provides reconstructive surgery for a child in need - and a lifetime of smiles.

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