Summerland Rotary Rotaplast Mission

Posted by Denese Espeut Post 
on Jun 04, 2015
 
 
 
On behalf of the Summerland Rotary Club we are very pleased to provide you with a brief update on the outstanding Rotaplast Medical Mission that our club took part in this past October.
 
Thanks to the generous support of many Rotarians and Rotary Clubs in our District we were able to participate in sponsoring a Rotaplast Medical Mission to Cebu City in the Philippines where 75 young persons, ranging in age from 6 months to 17 years, received desperately needed surgery for cleft palates and lips.
 
Five of our own Rotary Club members and one Rotarian from a Club in Vernon donated their time, money and expertise to participate as part of the non-medical staff that joined doctors, nurses, and anesthesiologists forming a combined medical team of 21 persons. Through the generosity of these volunteers many young lives have been set on a new and hopeful course; they have been changed forever.
 
Currently there are over 250,000 persons in the Philippines waiting on surgery for cleft palates and lips and another 4,500 babies born annually with this condition. As a result of the deformity these children suffer from malnutrition, an inability to speak properly, they are ridiculed and shunned in their communities and in many cases a parent or parents have left them out of shame. All of this suffering can end with surgery that corrects the issues in less than 2 hours.
 
To date the Rotary Club of Summerland has donated $30,000 from our clubs funds and has raised a further $12,000 toward our total commitment for this mission of $58,000. We are very close to our goal but still in need of $16,000. If you have assisted us in our fund raising efforts, please accept our deep appreciation and gratitude on behalf of our club and the children of the Philippines. If your club or someone you know might consider adding to our fund raising efforts we ask that you make them aware of this program and of the outstanding work their contribution has already done.
 
Please don’t hesitate to contract us if you would like one of our Rotaplast team members to participate in your club meeting as a guest speaker in the days and weeks to come. They would be more than happy to come out and tell the story first hand.
We leave you with a link to a short video that captures some of the faces of the families that have touched our hearts so deeply.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1XLnhWS9I8&feature=youtu.be
 
Kind Regards,
Denese Espeut-Post
President, Rotary Club of Summerland
Rotary Club of Summerland