World Journey of Smiles

Our mission to treat more than 4,000 children in just 10-days created more than just smiles.

Operation Smile’s 25th anniversary culiminated in November 2007 with the World Journey of Smiles, 40 simultaneous missions in 25 countries – the largest mission of its kind.

It took two years of planning, a call-to-action to Operation foundations all over the world, and the cooperation of the global communities, but during those 10 days, more than 1,900 volunteers from 44 countries worked together to change the future of more than 4,000 children.

• More than 3,400 medical volunteers received specialized training in our partner countries – another step toward advancing our Global Standards of Care during all missions.

• The launch of our DNA research project. Samples were collected from over 3,000 patients from 14 countries to be studied with the hope of advancing research into genetic markers for clefting (and identifying a
causal link).

• Specifial recognition from UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund) for our tireless commitement to changing children’s live all over the world.

• The President’s Call to Service Award was presented by USAID to our founders for outstanding volunteer service over the course of their lives.

• A Capital Hill briefing in Washington DC highlighted World Journey of Smiles and the significant public-private partnerships that make our
humanitarian work possible.

• A formal endorsement of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, who recognized Operation Smile for setting the standard for international service in surgery.