The gift of a smile

Henriette Lamprecht – When two-year old Ethan returned home after a successful operation to correct his cleft palate, other children were scared of him, his grandmother recalls.“They did not recognise him, because he looked totally different. They wanted to know what we’ve done with Ethan, they didn’t know this boy,” says Elizabeth Muhepa.She remembers the first time she saw her grandson and how scared his parents were. “We didn’t know what to do and how we were going to fix it.”It was the first time they saw a baby “looking like this,” Elizabeth says, as no one in their family ever experienced a cleft palate. “Doctors explained he was fine, he only had a problem with his lips. As a grandmother I was just happy to have him. I named him “gift”, because he was a gift from God.”Ethan’s parents received counselling. Doctors explained Elizabeth’s grandson was fine, “there was nothing wrong with his brain and he would eventually be able to speak”.As a beneficiary of the Nampharm Foundation, Ethan underwent his first successful operation in Windhoek to correct his facial deformities. “When we went back home after the operation, you could not see it was Ethan, he was smiling and beautiful!”Now her grandson is “just happy” says a proud Elizabeth. “He can’t speak properly yet, but he says ‘mommy’ and ‘aunty’. Now he’s even singing songs. I hope after his last operation and by the end of the year, he’ll be able to speak properly.”The Nampharm Foundation was founded in 2005 to assist Namibian children with specified illnesses in need of medical assistance.According to Carol Semendo it has been focusing on children born with facial deformities – especially those born with cleft lips and palates in Namibia. “When the foundation was founded in 2005, we started helping children with cancer until the Children with Cancer Association (Chica) was started, which fell under the Cancer Association. “We did not want to have two organisations focusing on the same cause,” Carol explains.The foundation started assisting children with conditions other than cancer, including those in need of a kidney transplant and those with spina bifida. “We realised we were not focused on one specific illness, hence the idea of concentrating on facial reconstructive surgery only. “The ministry of health and social services did not have a dedicated team for this condition and had only one or two plastic surgeons from Cuba,” says Carol.According to her, Namibia has a lot of children born with these types of deformities. Approximately 30 children per year receive surgical help since the foundation started focusing on the condition in 2009. “Awareness has been growing year after year – hence many children are referred to us.”A child with this condition and who is a state patient automatically fits the criteria to benefit from the trust, explains Carol. “We do not assist families who do have medical aid financially. These children are referred to us mainly through the state hospitals from all the regions in the country. We have posters available in four languages countrywide with information and our contact details to raise awareness.” The Nampharm Foundation is responsible for all hospital costs involved, with no contribution needed from the families.“Rhino Park Private Hospital gives us a discount on theatre and accommodation costs. The doctors that are on board with the foundation also work on a pro bono basis.”The foundation also arranges for social workers to talk to parents should the need arise.“We also assist with milk or food should the child need to gain weight before the procedure. We do however try to make the families independent after the procedure. In cases where the children need clothing, we also assist with that.”According to Carol the Nampharm Foundation is in no way connected to Project Smile.“The foundation is a completely independent trust fund, relying on sponsors like Standard Bank, who will be one of the sponsors of the foundation for the next five years. We also have regular sponsors for our annual fundraising event, including Checkers, IMS and Ricoh.”(www.nampharmfoundation.org.na; carols@nampharmfoundation.org.na)

The gift of a smile

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Namibian Sun 2025-04-17

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The gift of a smile

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Namibian Sun 2025-04-17

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