NU Operation Smile
Changing the world, one smile at a time.
Upcoming Events
Here are the events that we’ve got on the burner:
- Letter Drive (ongoing)
- Date Auction (April)
- Operation Smile Dorm Munchies (as needed)
- Bagel Sale (every other month)
- Dorm Bulletin Boards (ongoing)
- Awareness outreach project with middle schools (Spring)
- Smiles for 2003: Benefit concert with student A Cappella and Performances (April)
About
Us
Operation Smile is a non-profit volunteer medical services organization providing reconstructive surgery and related health care to indigent children and young adults in developing countries. Operation Smile also provides education and training around the world to physicians and other health care professionals to achieve long-term self-sufficiency.
Our student group is aimed at spreading the word of the amazing philanthropic force and raising money to provide necessary surgeries. We are one of over 100 professional chapters in the country, but the first in Illinois. Building trust and bridging cultures, our mission is to bring together health professionals within the public and private sectors to provide voluntary care for developing nations and the United States.
Each surgery costs only $750. For every dollar that we raise here at Northwestern, it has a promised corporate math of $5.
Found in 1982, Operation Smile International has treated over 60,000 in the U.S. and abroad, offering hope to young people with deformities. Every years, dozens of high school, college, and medical students participate on missions after attending a training seminar held during the summer.
Visit the National Organization’s website for more details. (top)
A Short History
of Operation Smile
In May of 2000, we started with merely two members and an envelope in the mail for a start-up kit. A few weeks later, we were on our way to holding our first event: a bagel sale in the lobby of Tech. It proved to be a success and we were able to attract several new members and gained the initial publicity any new club seeks. With only a few dollars to photocopy the signs, and generous donations from local bakeries, we made a $150 profit.
Since then, we’ve come a long way. The Daily Northwestern covered our startup in this article and this one. With a core group of members, we brainstormed ideas for the following year and made plans over the summer. In fall of 2001 and 2002, we were present at the freshmen activities fair where over 300 students have asked to be on our listserv (See “Get Involved” section below for instructions). With input from several other student groups, we devised a constitution that was passed by current board members. As an annual tradition, we hold a benefit student performance night with A Cappella groups and others. This year alone, we’ve held further fundraising drives and a letter-writing campaign that brought in almost enough money for one surgery. See “Upcoming Events” section for things to look forward to. (top)
Maybe you’ve heard of Operation Smile from a student group in your high school. Perhaps you saw a flyer or two around campus. And maybe this is your first time and you still have no ideas what we try to accomplish or how you might want to get involved. The first thing to realize is that what we do is in the name of philanthropy. We receive little recognition. We will probably never meet any of the children we help. Our fuel comes from the belief that those who are enabled have the responsibility to assist those that are not able to help themselves. If we can give one child the chance to smile, that is a huge accomplishment. If we can give a whole community of children the same chance, this is a miracle. (top)
NU’s Operation Smile helps to raise local awareness and raise funds for medical missions. Please read the other areas of our site for more information, or check out the main website here.
We have general meetings monthly,
but sub-committees meet more often to work on three specific areas:
- Publicity
- Awareness
- Fundraising
There are two ways to get involved:
- Make an online donation to the national organization.
- Join informally by signing up to be on our email listserv! Here’s how: send a blank message to NUOPSmile-subscribe@yahoogroups.com. That’s it! You should get a message confirming that you’ve been added to the list.
If you have any other questions about the club, feel free to ask anyone on the Board:
- Eddy Ameen (co-president)
- Naomi Pilosof (co-president)
- Susan Casper (treasurer)
Last revised: 02.03 (top)