The Children of Sumatra was set up with the aim of helping children suffering from cleft lip and palate living on the island of Sumatra, Indonesia. Many families there are too poor to pay for a simple operation that can transform their child’s future. In Europe and America we are almost unaware of this condition as it is corrected within the first year of a child’s life but in Indonesia this is not the case and the condition affects 1 in 500 children.

Celebrating 10 Years of Smiles

This year we celebrate our 10 year anniversary and the successful completion of over 500 operations bringing smiles and changing lives. The video below follows our work over the last 10 years...

Before & after operations

Here are some of the children we have been able to help over the last 10 years...

Mario & Alex

Many cleft orphans were found last year and they are now happily living in Harapan Jaya getting the care they need. We would like to thank all the kind people that have sponsored individual children but we are always in search of more regular donors. Receiving monthly donations is so important to us as we know exactly how much money we have and can guarantee regular payments to the children that need them.

Mario was found abandoned aged only 4 months and taken in by Harapan Jaya, the rehabilitation centre we work with in Siantar. We operated on his cleft lip last September and he will have his palate repaired later this year. Thanks to regular donors we are able to fund his daily needs and the staff at the centre give Mario a happy, loving home.

Alex is another child who benefits from regular donations. He was operated on in 2009 at 13 years of age for both lip and palate. Shortly after his operation his father died of cancer leaving 5 children, Alex being the eldest. Alex had to work to support his family but with your kindness we now help to support his family and Alex is back in school continuing with his studies.

To become a regular donor for the Children of Sumatra and improve the lives of cleft orphans like Mario & Alex, please download this form and return it to us to set up a standing order.

Location of our work

Sumatra is the sixth largest island in the world, and the third largest in the Indonesian archipelago. Lying between the Indian Ocean and the peninsula of Malaysia and Singapore, Sumatra sits parallel to the fault line, which runs up the west coast. This is where two tectonic plates meet, and it was movement caused by the immense build up of pressure along this fault line that resulted in the tsunami in December 2004. Worst hit was the northern tip of Sumatra, particularly Aceh province.

The work of The Children of Sumatra started on the island of Pulau Weh (also known as Sabang) in Aceh province. We now work over a large area of Northern Sumatra spreading as far south as Pekanbaru.

Other videos...

Road Trip 2010
Behind the Smiles
Making the Smiles
The Children of Sumatra 2007
Lobiga's Story
Bobby's Story

Newsletter downloads:
2011 operations
Fernadis' Story
Porman's Story
Supon's Story

The Children of Sumatra, 59 Hartswood Road, London, W12 9NE, UK

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