Smiles for Christmas for 100 children

Michelle Abrahams after surgery - what a difference.

Dubbed the 'Smile for Life' Campaign, MySchool and Woolworths have committed to raise more than R500,000 to perform these lifesaving operations.

In a bid to help them reach this goal, MySchool and Woolworths are reminding customers to swipe their MySchool cards during the festive season. Until 25 December, the first time on any day that customers swipe their MySchool My Village My Planet card at a Woolworths store, the store will make the usual donation to the selected beneficiaries and make an additional donation to the Operation Smile 'Smile for Life' campaign on the customer's behalf.

Braam Malherbe, Operation Smile ambassador says, "Due to the unfortunate disfigurements caused by cleft palates and lips, children are usually ostracised in their social environments. They face ridicule, as the condition is not understood. This often prevents them from going to school and forming healthy relationships or finding employment as adults. The good news is that cleft lip repairs can take as little as 45 minutes to change a child's life and future forever. Please Do One Thing (DOT) and help a child to smile."

Michelle Abrahams before surgery.

Operation Smile is a non-profit organisation that mobilises generous hearts all over the world to help children and young adults with correctable facial deformities. With its team of volunteer doctors and nurses, it aims to offer over 1000 life changing operations a year in Southern Africa and provide training to help others treat and support those born and living with cleft lips and cleft palates.

Operation Smile raises funds to cover the costs of these missions and training and has a commitment never to make a financial impact on the local Ministries of Health. As a result, it takes up to 2 tons of cargo with it on every mission and brings every glove, gown and stitch and all the medication that is needed to perform the operations.

For more information, go to www.myschool.co.za.