In celebration of World Smile Day, actress, singer, and Smile Train ambassador, Elizabeth Gillies, joins Smile Train, the world’s largest cleft-focused organization, at the iconic Empire State Building in New York City to shine a light on a birth difference that impacts millions around the world – cleft lip and cleft palate.
Credit/Copyright: Roy Rochlin/Getty Images for Empire State Realty Trust
Gillies and Smile Train’s President and CEO, Susannah Schaefer, offered remarks before flipping the ceremonial switch to illuminate the Empire State Building in Smile Train’s signature blue color.
“This year is our 25th anniversary. Since Smile Train began in 1999, we’ve partnered with local medical professionals in over 95 countries to provide more than 2 million safe, high-quality cleft surgeries for free. Of course, 2 million surgeries are much more than a statistic. These are lives changed – and, in many cases, saved. And, with each patient we help treat, we are also serving a family and indeed a whole community,” said Schaefer.
The event is part of Smile Train’s Lighting Up the World with Smiles campaign. Alongside the Empire State Building, other iconic landmarks that are shining bright today in support of Smile Train include the iconic BT Tower in London, the magnificent Gateway of India, the Rizal Monument in the Philippines, Niagara Falls and numerous other landmarks across the United States.
“Many people don’t realize that clefts are not just cosmetic – in fact, a cleft lip or palate can be a matter of life and death. A cleft can affect a baby’s ability to feed and even to breathe,” said Gillies, “I’m so proud to partner with Smile Train in support of this incredible work. As we light up the sky around the world, I hope we all remember that behind every light, there are countless children and families whose lives have been transformed because of the work Smile Train does, and countless more to come,” said Gillies.
The global illumination of dozens of landmarks is a vibrant display of solidarity and support for children with clefts, a life-altering (and sometimes life-threatening) facial difference that causes challenges with eating, breathing, speaking, and hearing. A cleft is the most common facial difference globally – every three minutes a baby is born with a cleft, affecting around 1 in 700 newborns.
World Smile Day is celebrated annually on the first Friday in October. It’s a day devoted to smiles and acts of kindness. First celebrated in 1999, World Smile Day seeks to reclaim the original meaning and intent of the iconic smiley face image by encouraging people to act kindly and make a person smile.
As supporters rally to take part in this global celebration, Smile Train encourages everyone to share their smiles and spread joy, highlighting the crucial work being done to provide free cleft surgery, care, and support to children in need.
