A Cape Town father and daughter recently joined a team of volunteers who helped deliver life-changing corrective surgery to children born with cleft palates during an Operation Smile South Africa programme in Johannesburg, reports IOL.
Dr Neville Botha and his 23-year-old daughter Bianca Botha (23) teamed up with 50 volunteers at Gauteng’s Nelson Mandela Children’s Hospital – which regularly partners with the campaign – where 40 children underwent the surgery between 29 May and 31 May.
This year is marked by the United Nations as International Year of Volunteers, recognising the important role volunteers play in communities worldwide, and Botha, an anaesthesiologist, said volunteering with Operation Smile has become a long-standing commitment.
He has taken part in 15 surgical programmes in South Africa and abroad, including in Morocco, Madagascar, Malawi and the DRC, since 2010.
His daughter Bianca joined him on her first Operation Smile programme this year. A final-year psychology student at the University of Cape Town, she volunteered as part of the psychosocial support team, helping children and their caregivers prepare for surgery.
“Being part of the psychosocial support team has shown me that healing goes far beyond the operating theatre. It has connected me with remarkable people – patients, families and fellow volunteers who all share the belief that every child deserves a chance,” she told IOL.
This year also marks Operation Smile South Africa’s 20th anniversary. Since 2006, the organisation has built a network of more than 150 active volunteers who have helped provide thousands of surgeries across South Africa and sub-Saharan Africa.
IOL article – Father and daughter duo volunteer to change lives with cleft surgery (Open access)
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