By Laura Rodriguez, news correspondent
A child is born with a cleft lip every three minutes. Northeastern volunteer organization Operation Smile challenges students to raise awareness and encourages them to join their cause through their largest fundraising event, the annual Art Auction Pop-Up, which took place Friday.
The club started this event two years ago, and raised $1,000 last year alone for funding surgeries abroad.
“This has always been a big part of my life,” said Monil Shah, a fourth-year marketing major and co-founder of Operation Smile. “I’ve been working with Operation Smile for five years now, and I emailed [the former president] about starting this up, as well as other events like this art show.”
AfterHours was filled with music, food and original art pieces from local artists in Jamaica Plain. The organization’s goals include advocating for children across the globe who suffer from cleft lip and hosting fundraising events such as this auction. They are able to raise the money necessary to send surgeons to developing nations where families lack the funds — which can add up to more than $400 — for their children’s surgeries.
“Children with cleft lips have a much better chance of dying without the surgery,” said Kayla Strong-Nieves, president of Operation Smile. “They are chastised and cast out by their communities because of religion.”
Former president and fifth-year economics major Brittney Ifemembi initially proposed the idea of bringing Operation Smile to Northeastern in 2015. The organization’s main goal has been to expand the size and breadth of the operation on campus.
“We raise awareness about the global nonprofit Operation Smile and the good things that they do [and] get people interested so they want to go on missions with the organization,” said Cassidy Feerick, a third-year economics and international affairs major and member of Operation Smile.
Members such as Strong-Nieves and Feerick insist that raising enough money to fund even four surgeries can make a difference to a children in a developing countries.
Strong-Nieves said this year’s event had a greater artist turnout than previous years. The organization reaches out to local artists through a Jamaica Plains artist collective and other artistic groups on Facebook, she said.
The impact of the organization on the student body has been evident in the turnout at these events.
“Beyond the obvious monetary benefit of raising money for children who need the surgery, it raises awareness of the issue,” said Hiren Patel, a third-year pharmacy major. “Those who are fortunate enough not to have the condition see what the basic benefit they can provide toward kids in these situations.”
