Recently, Chevron Thailand Exploration and Production, Ltd., led by Pairoj Kaweeyanun, president, presented a donation of 300,000 baht to the Operation Smile Thailand Foundation, represented by Jim Yarbrough, vice-chairman, at the Chevron office in Bangkok. The donation will be used to provide necessary treatment for children with cleft lip, cleft palette and other facial deformities to heal their smiles.

The Operation Smile Thailand Foundation was founded in 1997. The foundation revealed that approximately one in every 700 babies in Thailand is born with a cleft lip or cleft palate, or both. Untreated cleft lips and/or cleft palates are far more common in rural Thailand. Children with facial deformities who do not receive reconstructive surgery often have difficulty breathing, drinking, eating and speaking. As a result, many suffer from malnutrition, and medical and psychological problems.