First State Dental’s Dr. Michael Gioffre Presented Operation Smile at Saint Edmond’s Academy Alumni Office.
Saint Edmond’s Academy Alumni speaker Dr. Michael Gioffre, presented on the work he is doing with Operation Smile in a special presentation of this humanitarian outreach program that brings desperately needed dental health services to impoverished people.
Dr. Gioffre became involved with operation Smile in 1996. He and a team of doctors then traveled to the Philippines to treat children with severe cleft palate conditions. While in dental school, Michael was invited to a “free” lunch. The presentation he saw changed his life and he became involved in Operation Smile. Dr. Gioffre has had a total of 20 humanitarian missions to date; 15 Dental and 5 Surgical. His life changing missions have taken him to a number of different countries which include: Vietnam, Dominican Republic, Bolivia, China, and Philippines.
Dr. Gioffre told the audience, Operation Smile volunteers are special people doing special things for those who are less fortunate then we are.
Operation Smile was established in 1982 and has sent teams of volunteers to over 60 countries, treating over 160,000 boys and girls. These missions not only involved the treatment of children and adults but also the education of both children, adults and the local medical personnel.