VIA continues support for Operation Smile
The Village Improvement Association responded once again to an urgent appeal from Operation Smile, noting child life therapy supplies were desperately needed for patients in its surgical programs worldwide.
Shortly before the VIA delivery was to be made, an Operation Smile logistic specialist sent a last-minute request for blankets for young patients in Morocco and Rwanda. Fortunately, 244 blankets and quilts were in the inventory and ready for the delivery. Mary J. Sparks and members of her committee recently delivered those and other supplies to headquarters in Virginia Beach, Va. The urgency for the blankets was obvious upon delivery, as containers with shipping labels were there ready to be filled.
Operation Smile, an affiliate organization of the General Federation of Women’s Clubs, provides free reconstructive cleft surgeries to correct facial deformities in children worldwide. Without corrective surgeries, these children face serious medical problems including malnutrition, impaired speech and language development, cultural stigma and social isolation.
Since 2019, VIA women have partnered with Operation Smile creating vital materials to support children before and after life-changing surgeries.
Operation Smile headquarters is aware of the repeated large deliveries and consistent support from the VIA. This contribution of blankets, hospital gowns and smile bags comes just seven months after a previous delivery. Smile bags contain items for the children including hand mirrors so they can see their post-surgical smiles. A blanket is given to each patient which keeps them warm in the cool recovery rooms and goes home with them to keep. The child life therapy items engage and comfort the children before their surgery. VIA provided 204 such items.
The VIA committee collected funds for materials and held a work-together day, asking for volunteers to sew, knit, crochet or fashion no-sew blankets. These experiences ignite the volunteer spirit in members to help and comfort children all over the world.
The Village Improvement Association of Rehoboth Beach is a women’s civic and charitable organization comprising members of all ages and backgrounds. Since its founding in 1909, VIA members have been harnessing their collective powers to make enduring personal and financial contributions to the town of Rehoboth Beach and surrounding communities. The VIA is a member of GFWC Delaware and the General Federation of Women’s Clubs, an international organization dedicated to community improvement by enhancing the lives of others through volunteer service.
