Hello Friends of Operation Smile!

The last day of our mission has arrived, and all the patients have ben discharged from the hospital, on their way back to their homes and villages, far and near.  All told, the team provided surgery to almost 50 children over three surgical days on our mission to Nanchang, while our teammates at our second site in Nanyang had similar successes.

The last day of Post-Op is always bittersweet for me.  It is great to see the children going home to their families, in many cases to begin their new lives with their new smiles and inner confidence.  For the babies, we know they will have better chances of feeding and growing along a more healthy pace as their cleft lips and palates begin to heal.  For the children that we couldn't help, like my friend Qian Yu, there is the hope and the promise of another chance on another day on a future mission.  Also, we have made new friendships with our Chinese hosts, as well as international volunteers from the Philippines, Vietnam, India, Hong Kong, and Australia.  

The opportunity to work hand in hand with this international community is an honor, and a privilege which we do not take lightly. It's a first hand chance to really see that people are people all over the world, and a lesson in cooperation and understanding that we all take with us for the rest of our lives.  We have learned as much from our Chinese counterparts as we have hoped to teach.  In a short period of time, we have developed a mutual trust with our new friends in Nanchang.

And so, for these reasons, the last day of Post-Op is a wonderful capstone to an incredible Operation Smile experience.  Yet, the  last day also signifies that our work here has come to an end for now.  And soon, the team that formed so quickly will soon be going back to their own lives as well.  I have written many times in the past that the last day of a mission feels like the end of a wonderful summer camp. We want to go home and see our friends and families, but it feels like we don't just yet want to leave either...

Dr. Bill Magee, co-founder of Operation Smile, has often said that no greater bonds of friendship are forged than in the service of others.  And when Operation Smile volunteers come together in the name of helping a child, these bonds are formed for life.  On this mission, I was fortunate to be able to meet up with several friends I met on previous missions to China, some as long as 8 years ago.  Yet, we were like old friends again...  It's just another thing that keeps me coming back year after year.

So, enjoy these scenes from our last day in Nanchang.  The team has some free time in Beijing coming up, and I will be posting one more update, so please stay tuned!

Thanks and all the best,

Jeff