17th July 2011 was the very first time as many as 14 students got the opportunity to attend an Operation Smile mission together. Our deepest gratitude goes out to Mr. Abhimanyu Talukdar, Executive Director of Operation Smile Singapore for his unwavering commitment towards student development and the creation of such amazing opportunities.
The day we arrived was screening day, where over 200 patients from Indonesian islands near and far reported eagerly to be screened for their suitability for surgery. Upon reaching the hospital, we put up a beautiful cheery banner painted specially for this mission by our student volunteers during the camp this year. The lovely banner was extremely well-received by the child-life specialist, who placed it right at the main entrance of the hospital! Thereafter, we proceeded to assume different roles and responsibilities, such as filling in Medical Records, assisting the Patient Imaging Technicians, doing colouring and handing out stickers to entertain children waiting for their turns. We also gave out lunch packets and interacted with the families in the holding area as best as we could, despite the language barrier. We tapped into whatever scraps of Bahasa Indonesia we knew, resorted to iPhone Google Translate Applications, and when all failed, we just smiled, and smiled, and smiled. After all, a smile speaks a thousand words, and transcends all boundaries.
Take a peek into these insights shared by the students who went to Batam:
It was a trip worth going for as although I didn't do much, it made me more eager and committed to helping the children, as now their smiles become my source of motivation to help them.
By appreciating the things you have, you will find that you are the richest person in the world. By complaining about the things you don't have, you will be the poorest person in the world. Their innocence to the world is what really touched me deeply.
After this trip, I realized that there are so many people in need for this operation. They want to smile and be like one of us. I saw a kid who was drinking water and the water just came out of her mouth due to her cleft lip. I realized that people just look at things from what they view but do not really know what cleft lip actually leads to and how bad some people really want this operation. I am a teenager and I can be out there doing so many things. But instead I chose to come for this mission trip which was really eye opening to me. I always tell people that we are lucky but after this trip I really know why we are really lucky.
I will remember the trip by heart and I encourage student chapters’ volunteers to take part in such mission trips whenever possible because it is when I understand better what I am truly into.
It was really touching to see the people staying at the shelter cheering for us when we were introduced as friends from Singapore who came to help. Most importantly, I was directly involved in the process; I was seeing with my eyes that I was helping to bring smiles back. It really motivates me to continue with this cause.
The children are nothing different from us - they too have their own yearning for happiness and company - and Operation Smile is bringing the rights for social integration, confidence and above all a normal personal development back to these children and their families.
This experience, to me, highlights how Operation Smile has overcome barriers of communication to give us, the more privileged few, the chance to witness the world in both its good and bad, and hence highlights the need for philanthropy work.
For many students, it was the first time seeing and interacting with so many cleft patients firsthand – an experience we are extremely honored to be part of. It was transformational to come to comprehend that so much more needs to be done in our world, and so many more lives are waiting to be healed. For many of us, this ignites the passion in us and inspires us to further devote our youth and energy to give more and more each day to humanity.
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