![Nkunda before cleft surgery](/sites/default/files/styles/1_column_470_x_305/public/2021-05/nkunda-before-cleft-surgery-super_0.jpg?itok=jbShDbx1)
A Walk to Freedom
Nkunda had to hide in the bushes on his journey to school every day. Something needed to be done.
![Andrea before cleft surgery](/sites/default/files/styles/1_column_470_x_305/public/2021-05/andrea-before-cleft-surgery.jpg?itok=DOQe3-Ye)
![Andrea in smile train scrubs](/sites/default/files/styles/1_column_470_x_305/public/2021-05/andrea-in-smile-train-scrubs.jpg?itok=hgVo5Es2)
Treating the Whole Child in Ecuador
Meet the brother-sister duo transforming cleft care in the mountains of Ecuador.
![Zena Smile Train Africa](/sites/default/files/styles/1_column_470_x_305/public/2021-05/zena-at-beach.jpg?itok=jtRu-cqZ)
![Charles with two kids](/sites/default/files/styles/1_column_470_x_305/public/2021-05/charles-with-kids.jpg?itok=PQxqcT3J)
![Rawda with a Cleft Lip](/sites/default/files/styles/1_column_470_x_305/public/2021-05/rawda-with-a-cleft-lip.jpg?itok=aCtshKtY)
A Deafening Silence For Initissar
"We would sell everything we owned to get Rawda's lip treated as soon as possible — nothing is going to stop us."
![Priya Desai Smile Train](/sites/default/files/styles/1_column_470_x_305/public/2021-05/priya-headshot.jpg?itok=x62XbDOi)
Staff Spotlight: Priya Desai
Priya Desai, Smile Train’s Director of Strategy and Evaluation talks about what motivated her to join Smile Train.
![Cristina Solano](/sites/default/files/styles/1_column_470_x_305/public/2021-05/cristina-solano-headshot.jpg?itok=NNjUF_9z)
![Fernanda and cow](/sites/default/files/styles/1_column_470_x_305/public/2021-05/fernanda-and-cow.jpg?itok=MQ4WpgzD)
Fernanda: The Jolly Rancher
Wendy was 17, single, and scared. She had just had a baby with a cleft, and any help seemed far, far away from her family's ranch in the remote Andes highlands. But Smile Train was there.
![Bao - Carry Me to a Smile](/sites/default/files/styles/1_column_470_x_305/public/2021-05/bao-carry-me-to-a-smile.jpg?itok=lAPyyr28)
Carry Me To A Smile
After getting over the initial shock of having a baby with a cleft, Bao’s family noticed that he struggled to breathe and was unable to breastfeed. They knew he needed help, but didn't think it would ever be possible for him. Then they learned about Smile Train.