It was volunteer paediatric anaesthesiologist, Clover-Ann Lee’s first surgical programme as an Operation Smile volunteer.
She arrived carrying more than just medical equipment. She was navigating a difficult chapter in her own life.
“People often talk about how Operation Smile changes patients’ lives,” she says. “But that first programme changed me too.”
What she witnessed in Madagascar can only be described as inspiring. She saw desperate families holding onto hope. Arriving by bus or on foot from who knew how far away, driven by love and hope.
“One father carried his young son on his back for seven days to reach us,” she recalls.
Seven days! With no guarantee of help at the end. Just determination to give his child the chance of a better life.
Because, in many communities, children born with cleft conditions are shunned … hidden away … rejected. Whispered myths of bad luck or witchcraft follow them. Some children never set foot in a classroom. Mothers live in constant fear of what will happen to their child.
Standing in the operating theatre, Clover Ann felt the magnitude of what they were doing.
“Surgery isn’t just about fixing a lip,” she says. “It changes a child’s ability to eat… to speak… to go to school… and to be part of their community.”
That first programme didn’t just restore smiles – it reshaped her sense of purpose.
Since then, she has returned again and again – taking part in more than 16 surgical programmes across South Africa and beyond. She also helped establish weekend initiatives at Nelson Mandela Children’s Hospital, expanding access to life-changing care.
But no matter how many programmes she joins, the feeling is always the same.
“Every surgical programme leaves a mark on you,” she says. “There is always a patient – or a story – you carry with you long after you go home.”
And perhaps that’s the truth behind what we do. While the surgeries may take less than an hour, their impact lingers for a lifetime.
Not all of us have the skills and ability to provide hands-on help to children born with cleft conditions. But we can all be part of the outcome.
It can be as easy as resolving to contribute to the cost of our next surgical programme.
Because, even with brilliant medical volunteers like Clover-Ann Lee, we still need funds for equipment, consumables like drips, dressings and medication, transport and support for families who arrive with nothing but hope in their hearts.
Every contribution – whether it’s time, skills or financial – combines to make world class cleft surgery and comprehensive cleft care possible.