Around the world, every three minutes there is a baby born with a cleft lip or palate. It is estimated that cleft lip with or without cleft palate affects 1 out of every 940 births in the United States, totaling approximately 4,437 cases each year. Organizations such as Operation Smile have saved the lives of numerous children suffering from a cleft palate of cleft lip, a deformity caused during birth. Operation Smile’s mission is to give every child exceptional surgical care, as they believe all children deserve to be treated as if they were their own.