BU: Awareness Booth and Guest Speaker

At the beginning of December 2011, BU's club made a big last push of the semester. We went out of our way and made sure we got the best possible spot at our student union so we could host a What Makes Me Smile awareness booth. We asked students to stop by, share a what makes them smile and have them take pictures next to an Operation Smile poster. It was a simple way to get new people interested in the cause. Often tables at our student union hound students to buy something or sign up for events. We went with a different strategy to just focus on awareness. Now a bunch of students are now reppin' Op Smile in tagged pictures on Facebook--after we got them to join our club Facebook group of course!

Club treasurer Shalika Mathan and club member Jeanelle Uy share what makes them smile.

On the same day, Operation Smile hosted a guest speaker  Glenn S. Bacon, DO, FAAP, a board certified anesthesiologist, came to campus to discuss his experience as a medical professional. Educated at the US Naval Academy and Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, Glenn Bacon has significant experience working around the world with the US Navy and volunteering with Operation Smile. Since 1991 he has been on ten medical missions, where he worked as an anesthesiologist to assist in surgeries to correct facial deformities such as cleft lips and cleft palates. As a member of the Operation Smile Speakers Bureau, he shared his unique first hand perspective with the organization. We worked to gain advertisement from Pre-Med Soceity, Pre-Dental Society and the Pre-Professional Offices by marketing the event as "a great opportunity to hear about how medical professionals can make a difference in the world after graduation." Consequently the event was a success and we drew in a number of new people to learn about the cause. If you're hosting a guest speaker, remember to give him or her a speakers gift as thanks. We gave our speaker a BU coffee mug and club T-shirt--a simple but effective way to express our club's appreciation for his time and efforts.

Fordham: Songs For Smiles, Fall 2011

    On this past November 29th, the Operation Smile Club at Fordham University held its third “Songs for Smiles” benefit; an on-campus event which features live performances by talented bands and individuals, delicious catered food, raffle giveaways, and t-shirt decorating. Like the club’s last fundraiser, which was record breaking in terms of attendance and support, this Songs for Smiles was also extremely successful. The event’s turn out was fantastic, and all of the performers were exceptionally talented. Also, this year’s raffle was a big hit. Thanks to appealing prizes donated from various businesses such as Starbucks, Apple, and Equinox, students clamored over the raffle stand where they continued to help raise funds by purchasing $1 raffle tickets. Though, of course, the fall 2011 Songs for Smiles was not merely fun and games, as I’m sure you’re all aware of how hard it is to plan and facilitate a fundraiser. 

Fordham Club Members Nikki and Christina work the raffle.

    Like our previous on-campus events, this fundraiser required a great deal of preparation. I had mentioned in my update for Fordham’s second Songs for Smiles event that the planning and entire procedure of the event was considered one of the “hardest” experiences endured during my first year in the club. This was certainly true this time around, especially now that our leader Eliza Boggia had graduated and it was up to myself, as her primary replacement, to carry on her legacy. Therefore I gathered all of the valuable information Eliza had taught me last year and commenced the daunting planning process for the event. At our weekly meetings, myself and the rest of the club figured out the basics such as the best possible date for the event and its location. We decided on the school’s atrium, which, as you can see in the pictures, is a beautiful glass dome like space that projects into the campus courtyard. The next step was to submit our decisions through 408, Fordham’s designated office for student affairs and organizations, in order to get everything approved. And, similarly to the preparation necessary for the past events, numerous hours were spent in 408, whether it was ordering the decorations and food, meeting with the head of student affairs, or going over our approved budget. The next step was to secure talent for the event. Fortunately, several Songs for Smiles veterans were available to perform again, and additionally, members of the club reached out to performers they knew. Consequently, there were many new performers at the event, all of which surprised and pleased the crowd with their talent. Another way in which many club members helped out was through the acquiring of raffle items. At our previous on-campus events, we had always just raffled off some of the items that we were selling at the event, such as records or t-shirts. This was the first time in which we had actually gone to nearby stores within the city to ask for donations. Luckily, our neighborhood businesses were very generous, and before we knew it, we had gotten raffle items such as $100 Bed Bath & Beyond gift cards, free movie passes, Starbucks gift cards, L’Occitane products, and more. 

     Everything seemed to be in place, and all of the sudden it was November 29th and the club was all gathered to set up and make the atrium all pretty and decorated for the event. Once the momentary crisis of constructing the drum set was fixed, and the space was properly set up, guests started pouring into the space. As I have previously mentioned, the turn out was fantastic, ultimately contributing to the amazing amount of money we raised. Through the suggested donations at the door and the purchasing of raffle tickets, we received $500 in cash! Then, after being combined with numerous checks from patrons, that amount quadrupled to almost $2,000. That’s enough to pay for eight children to receive surgery! 
This Songs for Smiles was not only special in its profit and all around success, but also in the fact that Operation Smile student volunteers throughout the region came together to work on and attend this event. Months before the event I had met with college council member James Reid to discuss the event. It was James to put me in touch with Rose Massett, a very involved Operation Smile volunteer from Malibu who had just begun her freshman year at NYU. Rose ended up coming to our weekly club meetings and helped tremendously not only in terms of preparation for the event, but also running the event the day of. Furthermore, Samantha DeVito, who was actually my team leader during the 2011 Beijing ISCE, and has remained my good friend ever since, was nice enough to take the train from her school in upstate NY down to the city just so she could attend the event! Fordham’s Songs for Smiles event not only raised funds and awareness for our charity, but also brought together student volunteers to share their passion and love for Operation Smile.

Fordham President Dan Dalena and former Executive Leadership Council Member Sam DeVito

 Left to right: Fordham Co-President, Julia Tomasek, Former Fordham President and Founder Eliza Boggia, Former Executive Leadership Council member Sam DeVito, and Fordham Co-President Dan Dalena

Daniel Dalena

President

Operation Smile at Fordham University

Hamilton College Fall 2011 Update

My name is Daniel Lichtenauer, and I am a sophomore at Hamilton College and the National Chapter Correspondent for the Hamilton College Chapter of Operation Smile.  We believe it is very important to keep in regular communication with our members, advisors, and regional chapter organizers to provide updates on our chapter’s progress and to ensure a mutually beneficial relationship between everyone involved with this worthy cause. As Operation Smile is a new organization to Hamilton College, it is with great pleasure that I report of our chapter’s success thus far and our plans for the future.

The Hamilton College Chapter has come a long way since registering with Operation Smile on August 29^th, 2011. A base of supporters was established via Facebook, and was increased drastically after members manned a table at our campus open house in the beginning of September. There, students can learn about clubs on campus and sign up for those they find appealing. Our table was very successful- over eighty students signed up!

Our first meeting on September 7^th was aimed at informing new members of Operation Smile’s mission and goals. Just a few days later, Hamilton Student Activities Board approved the Hamilton Chapter and elections for executive board positions were held. The founders of the Hamilton Chapter, Kara Shannon, ’14, and Leah Krause, ’14, were already established as Co-Presidents, both clearly passionate for the cause. McKenzie Foster, ’14, was elected to Vice President for her outstanding previous involvement and leadership with Operation Smile and other non-profit organizations. Experienced in the management of funds, Amanda Ng, ’14, was elected to Treasurer. Samantha Otis, ’14, an organized and dedicated member of Operation Smile, was elected to the position of Secretary. Isabelle Tan, ’14, was elected to be the Chapter Communications Director for her knowledge of and previous successes with social media. Ren Stern, ’13, a strong communicator and enthusiastic member of Hamilton Operation Smile, was elected for the position of Community Outreach Director. A few weeks later, I was asked by the then established executive board to join them as National Chapter Correspondent based on my previous leadership experience with non-profit organizations.

On September 22^nd a fundraising page through First Giving was opened, gaining over $350 before the end of its first day online. Three days later, the $1,000 mark was reached, an astounding accomplishment for such a new club to achieve in only four day’s time. Our first awareness event, entitled “What makes you smile?” successfully spread the Organization’s message through allowing students to write what made them show their pearly whites on a poster, which was then displayed in a high-traffic area on campus. Members from our chapter took shifts by the poster to inform and answer the questions of the many students who participated in the activity. This allowed the campus community to really understand how much makes them smile, and that for a trivial cost, those unable to afford surgery can have their cleft palates repaired, able to smile at the things that make them happy without shame.

                 

                           Co-President Leah Krause answers questions at the “what makes

you smile?” poster.

On October 29^th our chapter held a Halloween-themed bake sale fundraiser, headed by the enthusiastic efforts of freshmen Ashley Carducci and Deanna Cho. The success of this event was an example of the Co-President’s effective management strategy, wherein any member of the chapter has the ability to form a committee to accomplish goals they feel particularly passionate about. This ensures the quality of our events and the enthusiasm of involved members.

           

     

Co-President Kara Shannon and involved members Ashley Carducci

and Deanna Cho man the bake sale table.

We have several ambitious plans for next semester focusing equally on fundraising and awareness, including a fundraiser concert by The Girls Can Hear Us, an up and coming house music artist. Also planned for next semester is a day without smiles, where faculty and students can volunteer to keep a straight face all day, followed that evening by a comedy show where smiles will be very much allowed. This will show our campus community that even the ability to smile can be taken for granted, and that we can do something to help those less fortunate than we. Also in the developmental stages are plans to host a guest speaker and to hold candy-gram fundraisers.

            Overall, the Hamilton College chapter has had an incredibly successful start, and looks forward to an even more successful future. Our chapter is composed of extremely passionate individuals with the intelligence and focus to greatly contribute to the mission of Operation Smile. 

Daniel O’Brien Lichtenauer

Hamilton College, ‘14

Nat’l. Chapter Correspondent, HCOS

dlichten@hamilton.edu