More than 45 students participated in “Miles for Smiles,” a 2.25-mile uphill run around campus, raising $500 in entry fees and donations for the benefit of children born with cleft lips and palates in Third World countries.
Operation Smile, the organization responsible for the event, has only been a registered chapter at Holy Cross for eight months.
The force behind the club is president Tim Donovan ’11. He established the program through the Student Programs and Involvement office during his freshman year. A native of Morristown, N.J., Donovan became inspired by the Operation Smile chapter at his high school, Seton Hall Prep. In particular, he was moved when he visited Fortaleza, Brazil, with his high school classmates, and met children with cleft lips and palates.
“In some countries, people attach a demonic aspect to cleft lips and palates,” Donovan says. “Kids are forced to walk with paper bags over their heads or aren’t allowed to walk around in public at all. They can’t get an education, their mothers can’t find work … it fosters a devastating cycle of poverty.”
Following this experience, Donovan wanted to bring the mission of Operation Smile to Holy Cross. “How could I know this is going on and not do anything about it?” he asks.
The mission of Operation Smile is to raise awareness and, in turn, raise funds to help as many children as possible.
“The nice thing about the Operation Smile mission is that it ties in with the Jesuit call to be ‘men and women for others,’ ” he says.
Donovan is not alone in his sentiment. The size of the club has been steadily increasing and participants of “Miles for Smiles” included many non-members of Operation Smile. Even parents of students participated.
The club will continue fundraising this year. The New England Patriots donated two NFL footballs, one signed by Tom Brady and the other by Tedy Bruschi. The club also received an issue of Sports Illustrated autographed by Brady and a photograph signed by Richard Seymour.
The items will be raffled off at a Hogan lobby table between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on Oct. 24, the first day of Parents Weekend.
All proceeds from the events go directly to the Operation Smile headquarters in Norfolk, Va., where they are then distributed to pay for surgeries for children with cleft lips and palates in Third World countries.
By Anthony Curotto ’09
