Good Morning Angels: #LipstickChallenge breaks World Record for Operation Smile

BACKGROUND: Every three minutes, somewhere in the world, a baby is born with a cleft pallet or lip. A cleft palate is a direct opening between the roof of the mouth, and the floor of the nose. A cleft palate is a more serious condition than a cleft lip, although both require surgery in order to be corrected. It is not really known what causes this condition during the baby’s development in the womb, but it tends to run in families and can also be attributed to diet, medication and environmental factors during pregnancy. The impact on a child’s development can be severe: eating, breathing, speech can become a challenge and the reaction from others to the physical appearance of a cleft lip is often very cruel. 

Operation Smile is a world wide organisation, specialising in cleft pallet and lip corrective surgery for children whose parent cannot afford medical intervention.

It takes only 45 minutes and R 5 500,00 to sponsor an Operation Smile operation - to change a child's’ life forever. 

For more info:  southafrica.operationsmile.org/

REQUEST FROM: Operation Smile

Donay van der Merwe is 18-year old and an ambassador for Operation Smile. 

She was herself born with a cleft pallet and lip. She’s had five corrective surgeries in private health care: age 3 months, 5 months, 7-years, 10-years and 16-years.  That’s why Donay and her parents have for many years been passionate supporters of the work Operation Smile does for children whose parents cannot afford the corrective surgeries required. Donay is currently a first year student at Potch University in B.Com Industrial Phycology.

ANGEL 1: Lynné de Jager, LJ Cosmetology and World Record Holder for applying lipstick in one hour 

On Sunday 28 July, a day a head of International Lipstick Day, Lynné de Jager took on Guinness World Record attempt: to apply lipstick to the most sets of lips, in one hour. The record was 535 and she hoped to improve it to 540. Not only did Lynné break the record - she set the bar way higher at 1000! All participants in the event were asked to pay a registration fee of R100. All these funds were raised for Operation Smile - and Lynné hoped to raise enough to fund 10 operations.

SPONSORING: All the registration fees paid by people who participated in the #LipstickChallenge on Sunday 28 July as well as corporate sponsors have teamed up to fund 10 children’s cleft lip corrective surgeries through Operations Smile - that’s R55 000,00 for 10 smiles.

ANGEL 2: The Good Morning Angels Fund NPC

SPONSORING: The GMA Fund will match this donation, to sponsor another 10 children’s corrective lip surgery through Operation Smile - that’s another R55 000,00 to secure another 10 smiles!