Students

Are you up for the challenge?

Join students just like you and run to make a difference in your life, and the lives of children around the world born with cleft lips, cleft palates and other facial deformities. All you have to do is run 26.2 miles!  You can handle this challenge by running 1 mile increments during the weeks and months leading up to the race. 

On March 20, thousands of people will cheer you on as you run the "final mile" of the marathon at the Virginia Beach oceanfront.

Log your miles in your PE class, running club, or with friends and family after school. Run, jog, skip or walk your miles; just make sure you have fun while you do it!

Go the extra mile and help other children receive new smiles by collecting pledges for Operation Smile. Any amount raised will go toward a surgery and a new smile for a child in need.

Start having fun, getting fit and sharing smiles:

• Register now for the Final Mile
• Download the Final Mile pledge sheet
• Check out a video of last year's race
• View photos from 2009's Final Mile
• Create your own online fundraising webpage

Parents

Children ages 6 to 12 run the Operation Smile Final Mile race at the oceanfront in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Participants log 25.2 miles leading up to the race, and on the day of the race, Saturday, March 20, they run their “final mile.” This opportunity allows children to run for a great cause, get fit, and helps less fortunate children along the way.

Follow these three simple steps to get your child involved today:

Step 1: Register your child for the Operation Smile Final Mile at Shamrock Marathon. The registration fee is $20 through December 31. Starting January 1 the registration fee increases to $25.

Final Mile participants receive goodies from Shamrock Marathon that include a T-shirt, water bottle, race bag and medal; and for the miles they run, participants collect coupons from Virginia Air & Space Museum, Moe’s Southwest Grill, Ocean Breeze Water Park, Rita’s Ice and Croc’s Restaurant.

Step 2: Once registered, your child can start logging their miles in school, during PE class or running club, and at home. They can walk, skip, jog or run their way to 26.2 miles.

Step 3: Help your child understand that age does not factor into his or her ability to make a difference. For the miles they run, children can collect pledges for Operation Smile and see how their efforts, combined with those of their classmates, friends and family, can change the lives of others in need. Last year, Final Mile participants raised enough money to provide more than 250 children with life-changing surgeries.

Links to get you started:

• Download the Final Mile brochure
• Register your child for the 2010 Final Mile
• Download the Final Mile pledge sheet
• Watch video of last year's race
• View the photos from 2009's Final Mile
• Help your child create an online fundraising webpage
• Find other children's fundraising pages

Teachers

The marathon ensures that students exercise their bodies. Operation Smile now offers teachers an optional Final Mile educational curriculum to exercise students’ minds.

The curriculum is separated for kindergarten to 3rd graders and 4th to 6th graders. It includes four authentic, differentiated, interactive, interdisciplinary, and student-centered lessons. State and national standards are identified for each lesson, and teachers can flexibly incorporate as many or as few components of the lessons as best suited for individual classroom needs.

Links to get you started:

• Preview the curriculum
• Request curriculum download
• Read more about Operation Smile education & training for teachers