Smile Train is the world’s largest cleft-focused organization with a vision to provide access to high-quality cleft care to every person in the world who needs it so they can live full and happy lives.

Clefts occur when the lip and/or palate do not fuse together properly during fetal development. Clefts left untreated can cause difficulties eating, breathing, hearing, and speaking. Clefts are not a medical problem – they are an economic one. Millions of children in resource-poor communities around the world don’t have access to the lifesaving cleft treatment they desperately need. This problem is intensified by the high rate of cleft births. Every 3 minutes a baby with a cleft is born.

Smile Train uses a sustainable solution and scalable model for cleft treatment, unlike any other cleft charity. Smile Train is helping communities build the infrastructure to maintain high-quality care for their people, so there is no longer an issue of access or resources. Smile Train understands that children with clefts need more than just surgery and is committed to treating the whole patient through comprehensive cleft care programs, including diagnosis, feeding and nutrition, dental care, speech services, and more. By empowering local medical professionals around the world, Smile Train has created brighter futures for more than 2 million patients in over 95 countries since 1999.

All children deserve access to quality dental care. For children with clefts, the stakes are particularly high. Compared to their peers, children with clefts are more likely to have dental anomalies and malpositioning in both baby and adult teeth and are at greater risk of tooth decay and gum disease.

We invite you to participate in our vision to provide healthy smiles and hope to children in need around the world. Our goal is to provide 37 free cleft surgeries to children by raising $15,000.

Together, we can give every child affected by clefts and their families a reason to smile!

Smiles at the Cinema: Annual Smile Train Fundraiser

By Pre-Dental Society at Louisiana State University

Smiles at the Cinema: Annual Smile Train Fundraiser

Sponsored by: Dr. Roy Cantrelle at LA Dental Center, Quest Dental, Ballanco Diagnostics, Dr. Polly Thomas, & Celebrity Theatres

Team Members