Creating Smiles,
Improving Lives

In OR1 on Thursday morning, nurse Stella Solis-Denny (from left), CRNA Andy Seider, scrub tech Janice Ryan and nurse Debbie Wilder gently move four-year-old lip revision patient Jose Perez Marroquin from the OR table to the recovery table as anesthesiologist Dr. Quint...

After his lip repair on Wednesday, three-month-old Gerardo Lobos models his new look. Photo by Kris Kennedy

Following his lip repair and BMT on Thursday morning, one-year-old Wilfer Marroquin finds comfort in the arms of nurse Cindy Thomas. Photo by Kris Kennedy

In the post-op recovery room on Thursday morning, nurses Cindy Thomas (left) and Mary Kay Lauden gently coax Dante Limon Morales into consciousness following his lip repair in OR1. Photo by Kris Kennedy

With eyes wide open, six-month-old Dante Limon Morales is ready for his bilateral lip repair on Thursday morning. Photo by Kris Kennedy

On Thursday afternoon, several parents wait for the moment when they first see their children after surgery. Photo by Kris Kennedy

On Thursday morning, three mothers wait just outside the triage room in advance of their children's lip repairs. Scheduling is a key point of emphasis during any medical mission. Typically, palate repairs are scheduled for the early part of the week due to the greater...

In his overnight room on Wednesday evening, nine-year-old Cesar Boc Reyes begins his recovery following a columellar lengthening procedure performed by Dr. Gorman. While the bandages and stitches are temporary, the repair of the cleft lip nose deformity will last for...

On Thursday morning, rhinoplasty patient Abner Garcia Pacheco signs a thank-you poster to be presented to the Austin Smiles team. Earlier, Abner's mother, Elizabeth, told a team member that Abner had often been picked on. Now, she said, he is already showing more...

Early on Thursday morning, four-year-old Mario Soc Concoba peers through the window of his overnight room as the Austin Smiles team arrives at MPSC. Photo by Kris Kennedy

During rounds on Thursday morning, Dr. Erika Sato (left) and Dr. David Wainwright share a moment with one of their 20 mission patients, 16-year-old Ingrid Coc Borrayo. Frightened that she would look "fea" (ugly), Ingrid cried for several minutes after regaining...

After an elevator ride from the recovery room to the waiting room on Tuesday afternoon, nurse Debbie Wilder delivers six-month-old cleft lip repair patient Nathaly Muralles to the arms of her mother, Heidy, as volunteer translator Katina Safia looks on. Photo by Kris...