Our Impact
Beyond the Beaches
For visitors, Bali is a tropical dream of blue seas, golden beaches, and fascinating culture. They stay in resorts and enjoy surfing, swimming, and visits to the island’s famous temples.
Others experience a different Bali. Children born with cleft lip or other craniofacial conditions are bullied and rejected. They face a life of social isolation. Parents feel guilty and hopeless. They don’t know where to turn for help.
In western countries, these conditions are routinely corrected shortly after birth. Villages in Indonesia, though, are often isolated. Local health centers can’t help these children, and poverty constrains parents from taking their child to a larger medical center.
Smile Foundation is the connection between these children and a happy, healthy life. Through our social outreach team, local partners, and concerned individuals, we learn who is in need of help. From there, we coordinate transportation to Bali, medical procedures, and follow-up. Once our patients return to their villages, they can face their future…..with a smile.
Every Smile Tells a Story
Nagita’s father, Aloan, brought her to the Smile Foundation from the distant Sula Islands for treatment of her cleft palate. Once they arrived in Bali, the Smile Foundation team discovered that Aloan had the same condition. Both father and daughter had corrective surgery and returned home to Sula with new smiles and new hope for the future.