18-Year-Old from Nicaragua Will Receive Free Surgery March 23 as Part of Operation Smile’s World Care Program

Operation Smile will provide reconstructive surgery to Walter Chavarria, a young man from Siuna, Nicaragua.  Walter, born with a cleft lip and cleft palate, will receive reconstructive surgery on Monday, March 23 at Dr. Richard Rosenblum’s medical office in Virginia Beach.  Dr. Rosenblum, an Operation Smile volunteer, and Operation Smile CEO and Co-founder Dr. Bill Magee will donate their services and perform the surgeries to repair Walter’s cleft lip and cleft palate.  He joins more than 200 other patients treated since 1984 through Operation Smile’s World Care Program.

Walter arrives in Hampton Roads tonight, March 18, and will stay approximately two weeks with the O’Brien family of Virginia Beach.  Kevin and Nancy O’Brien and their three sons will host Walter in their home and are looking forward to this experience.  On March 19, during his visit, Walter will celebrate his 18th birthday.

Walter Chavarria, 17, from Siuna, Nicaragua, was born with a cleft lip and cleft palate.  In February 2009, Walter traveled to the Operation Smile medical mission taking place in Managua, Nicaragua. But because the hospital is a children’s hospital and does not allow anyone older than 16 to receive treatment, the Operation Smile medical team could not operate on Walter.

The timing of Walter’s trip to Hampton Roads coincides with the Operation Smile Final Mile being run on Saturday, March 21, as part of the Shamrock Sportsfest.  Over the last several months, more than 2,500 elementary school students have been running 25.2 miles, in order to run their final mile on the Virginia Beach boardwalk on March 21 for a total of 26.2 miles, the equivalent of a marathon.  The Operation Smile Final Mile program is a way for children to get fit and raise money for children around the world suffering with facial deformities.  On March 21 at 11:15am Walter will be brought on stage and introduced to the runners after they’ve completed their race.  This will be an opportunity for these young students to see the impact they have made to change the life of a child living with a facial deformity.

About Operation Smile (www.operationsmile.org)
Our Mission: Operation Smile mobilizes a world of generous hearts to heal children’s smiles and transform lives across the globe.  Founded in 1982, Operation Smile, headquartered in Norfolk, Virginia, is a worldwide children’s medical charity whose network of global volunteers are dedicated to helping improve the health and lives of children and young adults.  Since its founding, Operation Smile volunteers have treated more than 130,000 children born with cleft lips, cleft palates and other facial deformities and the organization has a presence in 51 countries.  In addition to contributing free medical treatment, Operation Smile trains local medical professionals in its partner countries and leaves behind crucial equipment to lay the groundwork for long-term self-sufficiency.